title: Mechanisms, risk factors, and management of acquired long QT syndrome: a comprehensive review.
abstract: Long QT syndrome is characterized by prolongation of the corrected QT (QTc) interval on the surface electrocardiogram and is associated with precipitation of torsade de pointes (TdP), a polymorphic ventricular tachycardia that may cause sudden death. Acquired long QT syndrome describes pathologic excessive prolongation of the QT interval, upon exposure to an environmental stressor, with reversion back to normal following removal of the stressor. The most common environmental stressor in acquired long QT syndrome is drug therapy. Acquired long QT syndrome is an important issue for clinicians and a significant public health problem concerning the large number of drugs with this adverse effect with a potentially fatal outcome, the large number of patients exposed to these drugs, and our inability to predict the risk for a given individual. In this paper, we focus on mechanisms underlying QT prolongation, risk factors for torsades de pointes and describe the short- and long-term treatment of acquired long QT syndrome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, University Hospital of Heraklion, 711 10 Heraklion, Crete, Greece. ekallergis@med.uoc.gr
authors.forename: Eleftherios M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Kallergis
authors.forename: Christos A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Goudis
authors.forename: Emmanuel N
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Simantirakis
authors.forename: George E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Kochiadakis
authors.forename: Panos E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Vardas
mesh_terms: D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008133:Long QT Syndrome / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D016171:Torsades de Pointes / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control