title: Electrocardiographic abnormalities in the first year after heart transplantation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Describe ECG abnormalities in the first year following transplant surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  Analysis of 12-lead ECGs from heart transplant subjects enrolled in an ongoing multicenter clinical trial.
  
  
  RESULTS
  585 ECGs from 98 subjects showed few with abnormal cardiac rhythm (99% of ECGs were sinus rhythm/tachycardia). A majority of subjects (69%) had either right intraventricular conduction delay (56%) or right bundle branch block (13%). A second prevalent ECG abnormality was atrial enlargement (64% of subjects) that was more commonly left atrial (55%) than right (30%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Right intraventricular conduction delay or right bundle branch block is prevalent in heart transplant recipients in the first year following transplant surgery. Whether this abnormality is related to acute allograph rejection or endomyocardial biopsy procedures is the subject of the ongoing clinical trial. Atrial enlargement ECG criteria (especially, left atrial) are also common and are likely due to transplant surgery with subsequent atrial remodeling.
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pickham
authors.affiliation: Columbia University, New York City, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hickey
authors.affiliation: University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Lynn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Doering
authors.affiliation: University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Columbia University, New York City, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA. Electronic address: Barbara.drew@ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Barbara J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Drew
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001706:Biopsy / Q000009:adverse effects; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D006084:Graft Rejection; D016027:Heart Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
keywords: Electrocardiogram; Heart transplantation; Intraventricular conduction block