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Failure of Serial Electrocardiograms to Exclude a Large Anterior Myocardial Infarction and the Role of Transesophageal Echocardiogram in Acute Myocardial Infarction
Author(s) -
WANG YILI,
CHEIRIF JORGE,
MEYER STEVEN,
KNOCHEL JAMES,
TILL MARK
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
echocardiography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.404
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1540-8175
pISSN - 0742-2822
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-8175.1999.tb00812.x
Subject(s) - medicine , myocardial infarction , cardiology , chest pain , thrombolysis , electrocardiography in myocardial infarction , infarction , electrocardiography , cardiac enzymes
When patients present with acute onset of chest pain suggestive of myocardial ischemia, immediate clinical decisions regarding thrombolysis, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, or both are usually based on the history and abnormal electrocardiograms and confirmed by the presence of abnormally elevated cardiac enzymes. However, there are potential limitations of the electrocardiograms and initial cardiac enzymes in the diagnosis and confirmation of acute myocardial infarction. We describe the case of a patient who presented with an acute onset of chest pain and had a normal electrocardiogram and initial cardiac enzymes yet was found by transesophageal echocardiography to have a large myocardial infarction.