BACKGROUND Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) has always been a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for the cardiologists. There are many modalities to treat the problem. Of the available pharmacological treatment, the role of verapamil and adenosine is under debate. This study was carried out to detect and compare the efficacy of both drugs. The objective of this study was to comp...

This report details the case of 17 year old identical twins who both presented with paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT). Electrophysiological studies revealed atrioventricular nodal reentry tachycardia (AVNRT) in both twins. Successful but technically challenging slow pathway ablation was performed in both twins. This is the first reported case of confirmed AVNRT in identical twins w...

A contralateral bundle branch block (BBB) aberration during tachycardia with a preexisting BBB strongly suggests the presence of ventricular tachycardia. We report on a middle-aged, female patient presented with wide QRS tachycardia. The patient had orthodromic atrioventricular tachycardia with a left BBB aberration in the presence of a preexisting right BBB due to an abnormal His-Purkinje syst...

Catheter ablation is an experimental procedure that may prove useful for patients with drug-refractory supraventricular tachycardia. Current techniques involve the use of high-energy direct-current shocks, delivered via electrode catheters. These techniques have been used most commonly for ablating the atrioventricular (AV) junction in patients with supraventricular tachycardia. Such ablation m...

Adenosine was administered intravenously to 17 patients undergoing intracardiac electrophysiologic studies. At a mean dose of 179 +/- 88 micrograms/kg (+/- SD), adenosine suppressed sinus node automaticity and depressed atrioventricular (AV) nodal conduction. These effects were less than 20 sec in duration and were not influenced by muscarinic blockade with atropine (0.02 to 0.03 mg/kg). Adenos...

Simultaneous 24 hour ambulatory monitoring of the surface electrocardiogram and the intra-atrial electrocardiogram was evaluated in eight patients with broad complex tachycardia. The technique using a J shaped atrial pacing wire permitted a distinction between ventricular tachycardia and supraventricular tachycardia in all eight patients. Formal electrophysiological testing would still be requi...

Sinus pauses in the setting of supraventricular tachycardia is rare in children. We describe an asymptomatic teen with irregular heart rate detected during an incidental exam who was found to have short runs of a slow ectopic atrial tachycardia on electrocardiogram and prolonged sinus pauses on routine ambulatory ECG. Successful catheter ablation of the ectopic atrial tachycardia led to resolut...

A woman of 18 presented with a supraventricular tachycardia, subsequently shown to be caused by atrioventricular nodal reentry, which abruptly deteriorated to a multiform ventricular tachycardia. She had not received any antiarrhythmic drugs nor did she have any of the disorders that are usually associated with this atypical ventricular tachycardia.

Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is a cyanotic congenital heart disease which, without corrective surgery, has a poor prognosis. These patients have an increased incidence of arrhythmias both supraventricular and ventricular post surgical correction. The supraventricular arrhythmias are usually related to the scar tissue at the surgical repair site. We present a case of a young male patient status pos...