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Prolonged QT-Interval Syndromes
Arthur J. Moss, MD
JAMA. 1986;256(21):2985-2987.
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| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings. |
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PROLONGATION of the QT interval, either on a congenital or an acquired basis, is associated with an increased likelihood of malignant ventricular arrhythmias.1-3 Patients with QT prolongation frequently develop recurrent attacks of syncope or may present with sudden death. The malignant ventricular arrhythmias are characterized by rapid, irregular tachycardias that usually have a polymorphous configuration or a torsades de pointes pattern. The latter is a French term that describes the tachycardia as a "twisting of the points," so called because the QRS axis shifts back and forth around the baseline. Although polymorphous ventricular tachycardia and torsade frequently occur in the setting of QT prolongation, these malignant arrhythmias may also occur in the absence of a repolarization abnormality. Effective cardiac output and blood pressure are markedly impaired during torsades de pointes, with resultant syncope. Most tachyarrhythmic episodes terminate spontaneously with return of consciousness, but some may degenerate into ventricular fibrillation,
. . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]
Author Affiliations
From the Departments of Medicine and Preventive, Family, and Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Rochester (NY) School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Footnotes
This article is one of a series sponsored by the American Heart Association.
Reprint requests to Box 653, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Ave, Rochester, NY 14642 (Dr Moss).
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