Prediction of fatal or near-fatal cardiac arrhythmia events in patients with depressed left ventricular function after an acute myocardial infarction.

ABSTRACT:

Aims

To determine whether risk stratification tests can predict serious arrhythmic events after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in patients with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF < or = 0.40).

Methods and results

A total of 5869 consecutive patients were screened in 10 European centres, and 312 patients (age 65 +/- 11 years) with a mean LVEF of 31 +/- 6% were included in the study. Heart rate variability/turbulence, ambient arrhythmias, signal-averaged electrocardiogram (SAECG), T-wave alternans, and programmed electrical stimulation (PES) were performed 6 weeks after AMI. The primary endpoint was ECG-documented ventricular fibrillation or symptomatic sustained ventricular tachycardia (VT). To document these arrhythmic events, the patients received an implan

SUBMITTER: Huikuri HV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2655314 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature