An obese man, with an attack of myocardial ischaemia, developed arrhythmias only when he was asleep. Episodes of sinus bradycardia occurred progressing to arterioventricular block and sinus arrest. These changes in the cardiac rhythm coincided with periods of sleep apnoea.

In a prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebocontrolled study we investigated the facilitating influence of intravenous procainamide on conversion of atrial flutter by rapid atrial pacing. Fifty consecutive patients with spontaneous sustained atrial flutter were 1:1 randomized into two homogenous groups: group A received 10 mg.kg-1 procainamide intravenously, group B placebo. After infusi...

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES The aim was to investigate the clinical effectiveness of using antiarrhythmic drugs after electrical cardioversion in patients without structural heart disease, including their effect on the maintenance of sinus rhythm. METHODS In total, 528 patients with persistent atrial fibrillation but without significant structural heart disease who underwent successful electr...

BACKGROUND In canine hearts with inducible reentry, the isthmus tends to form along an axis from the area of last to first activity during sinus rhythm. It was hypothesized that this phenomenon could be quantified to predict reentry and the isthmus location. METHODS AND RESULTS An in situ canine model of reentrant ventricular tachycardia occurring in the epicardial border zone was used in 54 ...

AIMS Amiodarone is associated with significant adverse effects. We hypothesized that episodic amiodarone treatment would be associated with better quality of life (QoL) compared with continuous treatment in the prevention of recurrent atrial fibrillation (AF). METHODS AND RESULTS Quality of life was assessed in 158 patients from the Continuous vs. Episodic Prophylactic Treatment with Amiodaro...

OBJECTIVES We sought to evaluate the safety and efficacy of higher energy synchronized cardioversion in patients with atrial fibrillation refractory to standard energy direct current (DC) cardioversion. BACKGROUND Standard external electrical cardioversion fails to restore sinus rhythm in 5% to 30% of patients with atrial fibrillation. METHODS Patients with atrial fibrillation who failed to...

AIMS Left atrial appendage thrombi are believed to be the source of embolism in patients with rheumatic mitral stenosis in atrial fibrillation. There are a few studies which search the effects of left atrial appendage dysfunction in patients with mitral stenosis in sinus rhythm. METHODS AND RESULTS Left atrial appendage function and flow patterns in 41 patients with rheumatic mitral stenosis ...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the time course of the recovery of atrial mechanical function after pharmacological cardioversion of chronic atrial fibrillation to sinus rhythm. PATIENTS AND METHODS 21 patients (12 male, 9 female, aged 37-77 years) with chronic atrial fibrillation (< 6 months) were followed up by serial transmitral pulsed Doppler echocardiography. Echocardiographic studies were perform...