Heart Artifact Removal in Electrohysterography Measurements Using Algebraic Differentiators

Abstract

Electrohysterography (EHG) enables non-invasive monitoring of uterine contractions but can be contaminated by electrocardiogram (ECG) artifacts. This work presents an ECG removal method using algebraic differentiators, a control-theoretic tool for model-free derivative estimation, that preserves signal shape outside the detected cardiac pulse locations. The differentiator parameters are designed to simultaneously suppress slow physiological artifacts and powerline interference. Cross-channel clustering distinguishes cardiac pulses from localized artifacts, enabling accurate pulse subtraction without auxiliary ECG references. Implemented as a causal FIR filter, the method is validated as a proof of concept on multichannel EHG recordings from one female and one male healthy volunteer and compared to the template subtraction method.