title: Glue (toluene) abuse: increased QT dispersion and relation with unexplained syncope.
abstract: Exposure to toluene, one of the major components of glue, can lead to cardiac arrhythmias and sudden sniffing death syndrome. QT dispersion is a useful risk marker for cardiac arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of glue abuse on QT interval and QT dispersion. The study included 44 patients with inhalant abuse and 34 healthy controls. Patients were divided into three groups: glue abusers with history of unexplained syncope (n = 20), asymptomatic glue abusers (n = 24), and healthy control subjects (n = 34). QT intervals, QT dispersion, and corrected QT dispersion values were measured. QT and corrected QT duration were greater in the symptomatic group than in at the symptomatic group and greater in the asymptomatic group than in controls. QT and corrected QT dispersion in both symptomatic and asymptomatic group were significantly greater than controls (p= .001), and also QT and corrected QT dispersion in symptomatic group was greater in asymptomatic group (p = .001). These findings demonstrate that QT interval and corrected QT dispersion increase in symptomatic or asymptomatic toluene abusers. The QT and QTc dispersion were also found to be longer in the symptomatic group than those in the asymptomatic group.
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Department, Siyami Ersek Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Center, Istanbul, Turkey. draalper@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Ahmet Taha
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Alper
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Akyol
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hasdemir
authors.forename: Zekeriya
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Nurkalem
authors.forename: Ozkan
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Güler
authors.forename: Tolga Sinan
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Güvenç
authors.forename: Izzet
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Erdinler
authors.forename: Nazmiye
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cakmak
authors.forename: Abdurrahman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eksik
authors.forename: Kadir
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gürkan
mesh_terms: D000269:Adhesives / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000328:Adult; D006801:Humans; D008133:Long QT Syndrome / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013575:Syncope / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014050:Toluene / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D000269:Adhesives; D014050:Toluene