Significance of ventricular arrhythmias during myocardial ischemia.
The scoring of premature ventricular contractions (PVC) after myocardial infarction provides little accurate information about infarct size or about other ventricular arrhythmias, although it might be of some immediate prognostic value. Continuous recording with computer analysis and differentiation of serious ventricular arrhythmias has shown in untreated patients that the incidence of PVC does not reflect that of other ventricular arrhythmias. Ventricular tachycardia and R-on-apex T PVC continue without significant decrease in incidence up to 12 hours after the onset of symptoms. Primary ventricular fibrillation is rare after about 5 hours and stands on its own in significance.
D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D003201:Computers; D004562:Electrocardiography; D006801:Humans; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000150:complications*