TY - JOUR
T1 - Ventricular fibrillation associated with complete right bundle branch block
AU - Aizawa, Yoshiyasu
AU - Takatsuki, Seiji
AU - Kimura, Takehiro
AU - Nishiyama, Nobuhiro
AU - Fukumoto, Kotaro
AU - Tanimoto, Yoko
AU - Tanimoto, Kojiro
AU - Miyoshi, Shunichiro
AU - Suzuki, Makoto
AU - Yokoyama, Yasuhiro
AU - Chinushi, Masaomi
AU - Watanabe, Ichiro
AU - Ogawa, Satoshi
AU - Aizawa, Yoshifusa
AU - Antzelevitch, Charles
AU - Fukuda, Keiichi
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by MEXT KAKENHI grant 23790873 (to Dr Aizawa), National Institutes of Health grant HL47678 (to Dr Antzelevitch), NYSTEM grant C026424 (to Dr Antzelevitch), and the Masons of New York, Florida, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.
PY - 2013/7
Y1 - 2013/7
N2 - Background A substantial number of patients with idiopathic ventricular fibrillation (IVF) present with no specific electrocardiographic (ECG) findings. Objective To evaluate complete right bundle branch block (RBBB) in patients with IVF. Methods Patients with IVF showing complete RBBB were included in the present study. Structural and primary electrical diseases were excluded, and provocation tests were performed to exclude the presence of spastic angina or Brugada syndrome (BrS). The prevalence of complete RBBB and the clinical and ECG parameters were compared either in patients with IVF who did not show RBBB or in the general population and age and sex comparable controls with RBBB. Results Of 96 patients with IVF, 9 patients were excluded for the presence of BrS. Of 87 patients studied, 10 (11.5%) patients showed complete RBBB. None had structural heart diseases, BrS, or coronary spasms. The mean age was 44 ± 15 years, and 8 of 10 patients were men. Among the ECG parameters, only the QRS duration was different from that of the other patients with IVF who did not show complete RBBB. Ventricular fibrillation recurred in 3:2 in the form of storms, which were well suppressed by isoproterenol. Complete RBBB was found less often in control subjects (1.37%; P <.0001), and the QRS duration was more prolonged in patients with IVF: 139 ± 10 ms vs 150 ± 14 ms (P =.0061). Conclusions Complete RBBB exists more often in patients with IVF than in controls. A prolonged QRS complex suggests a conduction abnormality. Our findings warrant further investigation of the role of RBBB in the development of arrhythmias in patients with IVF.
AB - Background A substantial number of patients with idiopathic ventricular fibrillation (IVF) present with no specific electrocardiographic (ECG) findings. Objective To evaluate complete right bundle branch block (RBBB) in patients with IVF. Methods Patients with IVF showing complete RBBB were included in the present study. Structural and primary electrical diseases were excluded, and provocation tests were performed to exclude the presence of spastic angina or Brugada syndrome (BrS). The prevalence of complete RBBB and the clinical and ECG parameters were compared either in patients with IVF who did not show RBBB or in the general population and age and sex comparable controls with RBBB. Results Of 96 patients with IVF, 9 patients were excluded for the presence of BrS. Of 87 patients studied, 10 (11.5%) patients showed complete RBBB. None had structural heart diseases, BrS, or coronary spasms. The mean age was 44 ± 15 years, and 8 of 10 patients were men. Among the ECG parameters, only the QRS duration was different from that of the other patients with IVF who did not show complete RBBB. Ventricular fibrillation recurred in 3:2 in the form of storms, which were well suppressed by isoproterenol. Complete RBBB was found less often in control subjects (1.37%; P <.0001), and the QRS duration was more prolonged in patients with IVF: 139 ± 10 ms vs 150 ± 14 ms (P =.0061). Conclusions Complete RBBB exists more often in patients with IVF than in controls. A prolonged QRS complex suggests a conduction abnormality. Our findings warrant further investigation of the role of RBBB in the development of arrhythmias in patients with IVF.
KW - Brugada syndrome
KW - Electrocardiogram
KW - Idiopathic ventricular fibrillation
KW - Right bundle branch block
KW - Sudden death
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84879502589&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84879502589&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.hrthm.2013.03.013
DO - 10.1016/j.hrthm.2013.03.013
M3 - Article
C2 - 23499623
AN - SCOPUS:84879502589
VL - 10
SP - 1028
EP - 1035
JO - Heart Rhythm
JF - Heart Rhythm
SN - 1547-5271
IS - 7
ER -