Effects of different ventricular pacing modes on ventricular repolarisation in patients undergoing cardiac resynchronisation therapy: a single-centre study.
OBJECTIVE
The aims of this study were to compare ventricular repolarisation parameters in patients who underwent cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) at Sun Yat-sen University Memorial Hospital under different ventricular pacing modes and to understand effects of epicardial pacing on ventricular repolarisation.


METHODS
The study included 55 patients who underwent CRT. During follow-up outpatient visits three months after CRT implantation, the CRT devices were programmed to deliver no pacing (with the exception of patients with third-degree atrioventricular block), biventricular pacing (BivP), right ventricular endocardial pacing (RV-EndoP), and left ventricular epicardial pacing (LV-EpiP). Signals from the standard 12-lead ECG were recorded simultaneously to measure the QT interval, JT interval, and Tp-e interval, from which the heart rate-corrected QTc interval, JTc interval, and Tp-ec interval were determined.


RESULTS
The JTc interval and Tp-ec interval were prolonged during LV-EpiP and BivP compared with those during spontaneous cardiac rhythm and RV-EndoP. The JTc dispersion and Tp-ec dispersion were not significantly different among the four pacing modes.


CONCLUSIONS
Epicardial pacing prolongs myocardial repolarisation time and increases transmural dispersion of repolarisation. Epicardial pacing has no significant effect on the dispersion of regional ventricular repolarisation.
Cardiovascular Medicine, Jiangsu Subei People's Hospital, China.
Gu
G
Min
Cardiovascular Medicine, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Zheng
Z
Shaoxin
Cardiovascular Medicine, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Fang
F
Chang
Cardiovascular Medicine, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Lei
L
Juan
Cardiovascular Medicine, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Yuan
Y
Guiyi
Cardiovascular Medicine, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China. Electronic address: zzhoushuxiann@163.com.
Zhou
Z
Shuxian
D000368:Aged; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D058406:Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies
Arrhythmia; Cardiac resynchronisation therapy; Chronic heart failure; Epicardial pacing; Transmural dispersion of repolarisation