Introduction to Arrhythmias

Author(s)	J.S.S.G. de Jong
Moderator	J.S.S.G. de jong
Supervisor
some notes about authorship

Morphologic criteria to differentiate between SVT vs. VT in a wide complex tachycardia. This is part of the wide complex tachycardia flowchart

Arrhythmias (non-normal heart rhythms) can be a challenge to the person who tries to understand them. But with a systematical approach, diagnosis is often less difficult than it seems at the beginning.

First look at the heart rate:

• >100 bpm = tachycardia
• <60 bpm = bradycardia
• are there extra beats? -> Ectopic Beats

Secondly it is important to assess the origin of the arrhythmia:

• If the QRS < 120ms (i.e. a narrow complex), then it is either a sinus arrhythmia, supraventricular rhythm or a junctional tachycardia. In tachycardias, this flowchart will lead to the right diagnosis.ESCnarrowQRS
• If the QRS > 120ms it is either a ventricular tachycardia or a supraventricular rhythm with additional bundle branch block. This is a challenging difficulty in arrhythmia diagnosis, therefore a flowchart might help, which incoporates the Brugada criteria for VT.Brugada Another method to discriminate VT from SVT has been proposed by Vereckei et al.vereckei In the editorial on that paper an excellent review is given on the subject by Dendi and Josephson.dendi

References

<biblio>

1. ESCnarrowQRS pmid=14563598
2. Brugada pmid=2022022
3. vereckei pmid=17272358
4. dendi pmid=17317697

</biblio>