Open AccessDrink, Drugs, and the QT Interval
Author(s) -
Weir Robin A. P.,
Petrie Colin J.,
Murphy Charles Angus,
Dargie Henry J.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
clinical cardiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.263
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1932-8737
pISSN - 0160-9289
DOI - 10.1002/clc.20631
Subject(s) - medicine , qt interval , repolarization , cardiology , electrocardiography , prolongation , myocardial ischemia , medical prescription , long qt syndrome , anesthesia , ischemia , pharmacology , electrophysiology
The effects of several prescription and illicitly‐used drugs on electrocardiographic repolarization are well documented, most frequently manifested as prolongation of the corrected QT (QTc) interval. The combination of multiple repolarization‐modulating drugs taken in high dosage can occasionally lead to extreme abnormalities of the QTc interval and ST‐segment on the surface ECG, which can lead to the erroneous diagnosis of underlying myocardial ischemia and inappropriate treatment. We report on one such case in which the acute management of a syncopal patient was detrimentally influenced by misinterpretation of a very unusual ECG. Copyright © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.