sphygmograph
/sfɪɡməɡræf/
noun
- An instrument that records the pulse or heartbeat, especially one that produces a visual tracing of the pulse wave.
- Doctors in the 19th century relied on the sphygmograph to study heart rhythms before modern monitors existed.
- The early sphygmograph used a lever and a rotating drum to draw the pulse pattern on paper.
- A sphygmograph helped researchers compare the pulse rates of athletes and non-athletes.