Prevalence, characteristics, and prognosis role of type 1 ST elevation in the peripheral ECG leads in patients with Brugada syndrome

BACKGROUND

Despite isolated reports of Brugada syndrome (BrS) in the inferior or lateral leads, the prevalence and prognostic value of ST elevation in the peripheral electrocardiographic (ECG) leads in patients with BrS remain poorly known.

OBJECTIVE

To study the prevalence, characteristics, and prognostic value of type 1 ST elevation and ST depression in the peripheral ECG leads in a large cohort of patients with BrS.

METHODS

ECGs from 323 patients with BrS (age 47 ± 13 years; 257 men) with spontaneous (n = 141) or drug-induced (n = 182) type 1 ECG were retrospectively reviewed. Two hundred twenty-five (70%) patients were asymptomatic, 72 (22%) patients presented with unexplained syncope, and 26 (8%) patients presented with sudden death (12 patients) or appropriated implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapies (14 patients) at diagnosis or over a mean follow-up of 48 ± 34 months.

RESULTS

Thirty (9%) patients presented with type 1 ST elevation in at least 1 peripheral lead (22 patients in the aVR leads, 2 in the inferior leads, 5 in both aVR and inferior leads, and 1 in the aVR and VL leads). Patients with type 1 ST elevation in the peripheral leads more often had mutations in the SCN5A gene, were more often inducible, had slower heart rate, and higher J-wave amplitude in the right precordial leads. Twenty-seven percent (8 of 30) of the patients with type 1 ST elevation in the peripheral leads experimented sudden death/appropriate implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy, whereas it occurred in only 6% (18 of 293) of other patients (P < .0001). In multivariate analysis, type 1 ECG in the peripheral leads was independently associated with malignant arrhythmic events (odds ratio 4.58; 95% confidence interval 1.7-12.32; P = .0025).

CONCLUSIONS

Type 1 ST elevation in the peripheral ECG leads can be seen in 10% of the patients with BrS and is an independent predictor for a malignant arrhythmic event.

Primary electrical diseases diagnosis, genetic and management

Primary electrical diseases or channelopathies are inherited genetic alterations of the cell ionic and electrical behavior leading to various cardiac arrhythmias carrying the risk of sudden death. A descriptive review of the successively described channelopathies is made in this article, with emphasis on the clinical manifestations, the genetic background and the currently accepted therapeutic options.

[Epithelioid sarcoma: a retrospective study of conservative treatment with initial surgery and radiotherapy]

INTRODUCTION

Epithelioid sarcoma is a rare type of soft tissue sarcomas with a high risk of recurrence both local and distant. The place of surgical conservative treatment and the role of radiation therapy remain controversial.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A serie of 9 consecutive patients treated with initial conservative surgery and postoperative radiotherapy (median dose of 52.8 Gy) from 1987 to 2006 in the same institution was analyzed.

RESULTS

With a median follow-up of 40 months (range 15-153 months), the rate of local, nodal and distant relapse is respectively 56%, 11% and 33%. The rate of death is 44.5%. No imputation has been performed.

CONCLUSION

Even with a high rate of local relapse observed, a conservative treatment doesn't seem to influence badly the overall survival (55.5% alive at 40 months). Indeed the rate of distant relapse and death are comparable with those found in the literature. Moreover relapse occurred almost within the irradiated volumes. An improvement of dose could be also discussed.

Optimal Pacing in Congenital Complete Atrioventricular Block of Immunological Origin: Interest of Multisite Stimulation

An infant with a congenital auriculoventricular block (CAVB) of immunological origin was diagnosed prenatally. The mother had Gougerot-Sjögren disease with positive anti-Sjogren's Syndrome A (SSA) and Sjogren's Syndrome B (SSB) serologies. Cardiac pacing was necessary and the epicardial route was chosen. Considering the left ventricular (LV) dilatation, bi-ventricular (BiV) stimulation was preferred to the usual DDD mode, presumed to have a deleterious long-term effect. Echographic parameters were better with BiV stimulation: the asynchronism induced by mono-RV stimulation was corrected and the QRS complexes were narrower. BiV pacing of a CAVB with LV dilation looks clinically and echographically attractive but needs to be validated in the long term.

Epicardial catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia using surgical subxyphoid approach

We report the case of a patient presenting with a previous inferior myocardial infarction complicated by incessant monomorphic ventricular tachycardia resistant to antiarrhythmic drugs. Because endocardial catheter ablation failed and because of focal endocardial activation arising from the left ventricular inferior wall, an epicardial location of the reentry circuit was suspected. Catheter mapping of the pericardial space through a surgical subxyphoid approach performed in the electrophysiological laboratory confirmed the epicardial location of the arrhythmogenic substrate and allowed us successfully to ablate and cure the patient. Surgical subxyphoid approach can be performed in the electrophysiological laboratory when epicardial ablation is needed in case of inadvisable, difficult, or failed non-surgical percutaneous access.

Approche conservatrice et fonctionnelle dans les sarcomes des tissus mous des membres : place de la radiothérapie

Recent publications have permitted to quantify the benefit of radiotherapy in the conservative treatment of soft tissue sarcoma of the limbs. The aim of this review is to focus on aspects of radiotherapy witch influence local control and functional outcome for early and late normal tissue damage. The evaluation of late effects is performed according to Soma-Lent (Subjective-Objective-Management-Analytic-Late Effects of Normal Tissues) classification. About complications, neurological complications are probably under estimated and are related to total dose of radiation therapy.

[Aseptic meningitis during Sweet syndrome]

BACKGROUND

Sweet syndrome is a neutrophilic skin disease that can involve extracutaneous signs. Here we describe a case of aseptic meningitis, a rare potential extracutaneous sign of Sweet syndrome.

CASE REPORT

A 42-year-old man was hospitalized for non-pruritic maculoerythematous skin lesions of the legs and back with subsequent myalgia. A histology specimen taken from a skin lesion revealed an acute neutrophilic disease consistent with Sweet syndrome. Marked inflammation and cholestasis were observed. Systemic corticosteroid therapy was given and resulted in good clinical and laboratory response. Two weeks later, in a setting of gradual dosage reduction, the patient was hospitalized for intense headaches associated with meningeal irritation in an inflammatory context. Liver function tests were again abnormal. We concluded on a diagnosis of Sweet syndrome complicated by aseptic meningitis and hepatic sites. Investigation for underlying disease, particularly digestive or hematologic, was negative. A favorable outcome was achieved following administration of higher doses of systemic corticosteroids.

DISCUSSION

Aseptic meningitis constitutes an extracutaneous localization of Sweet syndrome. A multidisciplinary approach and exclusion of infectious origin are required in order to institute systemic corticosteroid therapy.

[Ablation of ventricular extra-systole in the left Valsalva sinus. A case report]

We report the case of a patient presenting with unrelenting isolated or repetitive monomorphic ventricular extra-systoles, with left block and right axis deviation, which appeared to arise from the right ventricular chamber, but for which ablation was finally performed in the left Valsalva sinus. The ECG and endocavity electro-physiological features which led us to suspect this atypical, although not exceptional, situation are reported, as well as the techniques for ablation available in this case.