Significance of a fragmented QRS complex versus a Q wave in patients with coronary artery disease.
BACKGROUND
Q waves on a 12-lead ECG are markers of a prior myocardial infarction (MI). However, they may regress or even disappear over time, and there is no specific ECG sign of a non-Q-wave MI. Fragmented QRS complexes (fQRSs), which include various RSR' patterns, without a typical bundle-branch block are markers of altered ventricular depolarization owing to a prior myocardial scar. We postulated that the presence of an fQRS might improve the ability to detect a prior MI compared with Q waves alone by ECG.


RESULTS
A cohort of 479 consecutive patients (mean+/-SD age, 58.2+/-13.2 years; 283 males) who were referred for nuclear stress tests was studied. The fQRS included various morphologies of the QRS (<120 ms), which included an additional R wave (R') or notching in the nadir of the S wave, or >1 R' (fragmentation) in 2 contiguous leads, corresponding to a major coronary artery territory. The Q wave was present in 71 (14.8%) patients, an fQRS was present in 191 (34.9%) patients, and an fQRS and/or a Q wave was present in 203 (42.3%) patients. Sensitivity, specificity, and the negative predictive value for myocardial scar as detected by single photon emission computed tomography analysis were 36.3%, 99.2%, and 70.8%, respectively, for the Q wave alone; 85.6%, 89%, and 92.7%, respectively, for the fQRS; and 91.4%, 89%, and 94.2%, respectively, for the Q wave and/or fQRS.


CONCLUSIONS
The fQRS on a 12-lead ECG is a marker of a prior MI, defined by regional perfusion abnormalities, which has a substantially higher sensitivity and negative predictive value compared with the Q wave.
Das
Mithilesh K
MK
Krannert Institute of Cardiology, Indiana School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA. midas@iupui.edu
Khan
Bilal
B
Jacob
Sony
S
Kumar
Awaneesh
A
Mahenthiran
Jo
J
D000368:Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D005080:Exercise Test; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000175:diagnosis; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon