Resuscitation
Volume 52, Issue 2 , Pages 175-182 , February 2002

Calcium channel blockers as first line treatment for broad complex tachycardia with right bundle branch block: ingenuity or folly?

  • Jenn Chyuan Wang

      Affiliations

    • Department of Emergency Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Outram Road, Singapore 169608, Singapore
    • ,
  • Swee Han Lim

      Affiliations

    • Department of Emergency Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Outram Road, Singapore 169608, Singapore
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +65-32-13558; fax: +65-22-60294
    • ,
  • Wee Siong Teo

      Affiliations

    • Department of Cardiology, National Heart Centre, Singapore, Singapore
    • ,
  • V Anantharaman

      Affiliations

    • Department of Emergency Medicine, Singapore General Hospital, Outram Road, Singapore 169608, Singapore

Received 23 April 2001 ,Revised 2 August 2001 ,Accepted 21 August 2001.

References 

  1. Dancy M, Camm AJ, Ward D. Misdiagnosis of chronic recurrent ventricular tachycardia. Lancet. 1985;2(8450):320–323
  2. Griffith MJ, Garratt CJ, Mounsey P, et al.  Ventricular tachycardia as default diagnosis in broad complex tachycardia. Lancet. 1994;34(8894):386–388
  3. Herbert ME, Votey SR, Morgan MT, et al.  Failure to agree on the electrocardiographic diagnosis of ventricular tachycardia. Ann. Emerg. Med. 1996;27(1):35–38
  4. Olshansky B. Ventricular tachycardia masquerading as supraventricular tachycardia: a wolf in sheep's clothings. J. Electrocard. 1988;21(4):377–384
  5. Stewart RB, Gust BS, Bardy H, et al.  Wide complex tachycardia: misdiagnosis and outcome after emergent therapy. Ann. Int. Med. 1986;104:766–771
  6. Morady F, Baerman JM, Dicarlo LA, et al.  A prevalent misconception regarding wide complex tachycardia. J. Am. Med. Assoc. 1985;254:2790–2792
  7. Rankin AC, Rae AP, Cobbe SM. Misuse of intravenous verapamil in patients with ventricular tachycardia. Lancet. 1987;2(8557):472–474
  8. Belhassen B, Shapira I, Pelleg A, et al.  Idiopathic recurrent sustained ventricular tachycardia responsive to verapamil: an ECG-electrophysiologic entity. Am. Heart J. 1984;108(4):1034–1037
  9. German LD, Packer DL, Bardy GH, et al.  Ventricular tachycardia induced by atrial stimulation in patients without symptomatic cardiac disease. Am. J. Cardiol. 1983;52:1202–1207
  10. Klein GJ, Millman PJ, Yee R. Recurrent ventricular tachycardia responsive to verapamil. Pace. 1984;7:938–948
  11. Lin FC, Finley D, Rahimtoola SH, et al.  Idiopathic paroxysmal ventricular tachycardia with a QRS pattern of right bundle branch block and left axis deviation: a unique clinical entity with specific properties. Am. J. Cardiol. 1983;52:95–100
  12. Willems JL, Robles de Medina EO, Bernard R, et al.  Criteria for intraventricular conduction disturbances and pre-excitation. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 1985;5:1261–1275
  13. American Heart Association. Advanced cardiac life support. 1997; 1–38.
  14. Elswick BD, Niemann JT. Fascicular ventricular tachycardia: an uncommon but distinctive form of ventricular tachycardia. Ann. Emerg. Med. 1998;31(6):795; June
  15. Belhassen B, Rotmensch HH, Laniado S. Response of recurrent sustained ventricular tachycardia to verapamil. Br. Heart J. 1981;46:679–682
  16. Ohe T, Shimomura K, Aihara N, et al.  Idiopathic sustained left ventricular tachycardia clinical and electrophysiologic characteristics. Circulation. 1988;77(3):560–568
  17. Ward DE, Nathan AW, Camm AJ. Fasicular tachycardia sensitive to calcium antagonists. Eur. Heart J. 1984;5:896–905
  18. International guidelines 2000 for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency cardiovascular care, a consensus on science. Resuscitation 2000; 46(8):I-158–I-161.

☆ Presented in part at Society of Academic and Emergency Medicine Annual Meeting, Boston, USA, May 1999.

PII: S0300-9572(01)00458-0

Resuscitation
Volume 52, Issue 2 , Pages 175-182 , February 2002

Article Tools

* Image Usage & Resolution