title: Prognostic value of exercise stress echocardiography in patients with left bundle branch block.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The literature lacks studies about the prognostic value of exercise stress echocardiography (ESE) in patients with complete left bundle branch block (LBBB) of the bundle of His.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the prognostic value of ESE in patients with LBBB.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a retrospective cohort that evaluated 135 patients with LBBB, from January 2001 to October 2009, of which 37.8% were men, mean age 63.6 ± 11.5 years submitted to ESE according to Bruce protocol on a treadmill. Cox regression was used, considering these outcomes: death from all causes and from cardiac events, defined as acute myocardial infarction (AMI), percutaneous angioplasty (PA), coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and death from cardiac causes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Positive ESE was observed in 42 patients (31%). The mean follow-up was 45.8 ± 4.7 months. During this period, there were 9 deaths from all causes and 9 cardiac events (3 deaths from cardiac causes, 3 myocardial infarctions, 2 PA and one CABG). The mortality rate from all causes during five years was 16.1% in the group with positive ESE and 2.5% in the group with negative test (p = 0.171), whereas the rate of cardiac events in the same period was 15.1% for the positive ESE and 1.6% in the group with negative test (p = 0.009).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ESE showed to be a predictor of cardiac events in patients with LBBB.
authors: Departamento de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristovão, SE, Brazil.
authors: Francis de Lima
authors: Fde L
authors: Vasconcelos
authors: Bruno Fernandes de Oliveira
authors: BF
authors: Santos
authors: Nathalie de Oliveira
authors: Nde O
authors: Santana
authors: Gustavo Baptista de Almeida
authors: GB
authors: Faro
authors: Romerito de Oliveira
authors: Rde O
authors: Rocha
authors: Vinício Vieira
authors: VV
authors: Leal
authors: José Augusto
authors: JA
authors: Barreto-Filho
authors: Antônio Carlos Sobral
authors: AC
authors: Sousa
authors: Joselina Luzia Menezes
authors: JL
authors: Oliveira
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002037:Bundle-Branch Block / Q000401:mortality*; D002423:Cause of Death; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000401:mortality*; D025401:Echocardiography, Stress / Q000379:methods*; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis