title: Prolonged QT: A rare cause of cardiac arrest.
abstract: A prolonged QT interval can be caused by medications, electrolyte abnormalities, or long QT syndrome, a genetic mutation that prolongs the action potential. Torsades de pointes is a potentially fatal polymorphic VT most often associated with prolonged QT interval. This article focuses on recognizing and treating drug-induced torsades de pointes.
authors.affiliation: Jennifer Carlquist practices cardiology at Central Coast Cardiology in Salinas, Calif. She teaches nationally for CME4Life. The author has indicated no relationships to disclose relating to the content of this article.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Carlquist
mesh_terms: D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D007008:Hypokalemia / Q000150:complications; D008875:Middle Aged; D019338:Polypharmacy; D016171:Torsades de Pointes / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*