Background: Ventricular tachycardia (VT) is the most common cause of wide complex tachycardia and a potentially fatal cardiac rhythm disorder. Ventricular arrhythmias, including VT, cause approximately 25% of sudden cardiac deaths. Some studies have proposed a dose-response relationship between VT burden and risk of mortality; however, these studies may have been limited by the inclusion [...]

Background: A priority of bedside electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring is identification of ventricular tachycardia (VT), a lethal arrhythmia associated with morbidity and mortality. However, up to 87% of VT alarms could be false. In addition, little is known about the rate of mortality associated with VT. We assessed the rate of 30-day in-hospital mortality associated with [...]

Case Presentation: Inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST) was initially described as a non-paroxysmal increase in the resting sinus heart rate in otherwise healthy individuals (1). It is most often seen in young females and rarely in the elderly (2). Herein we report a case of an elderly female diagnosed with IST. 67-year-old female with past medical [...]

Case Presentation: A 20-year-old female presented to the emergency department with weakness and fatigue. She reported new onset midsternal chest pain that began approximately twelve hours prior to admission. She had noticed episodes of palpitations and tachycardia over the course of the past two months for which she was prescribed metoprolol tartrate, with no relief. [...]

Case Presentation: A 61-year-old male with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and GERD presented to the ED with intermittent palpitations associated with exertional shortness of breath and near-syncopal episodes since several months. On presentation, he was in sustained Ventricular Tachycardia storm and required defibrillation 5 times despite starting on Lidocaine and Amiodarone infusions along with bolus doses of [...]

Case Presentation: A 70-year-old man with a remote history of ischemic cardiomyopathy presented to the hospital with worsening shortness of breath. His review of systems was remarkable for orthopnea. His past medical history was significant for hypertension and hyperlipidemia. His home medications were carvedilol, aspirin, lisinopril and simvastatin. Diagnostic studies including cardiac enzymes and chest [...]

Case Presentation: Our patient is a 90-year-old Caucasian female with atrial fibrillation, peripheral vascular disease, and hypertension was admitted to the hospital due to shortness of breath for one day and myalgias for the past three days. Her chest x-ray done on presentation was consistent with multifocal pneumonia, and on further testing, she was subsequently [...]

Case Presentation: A 79-year-old woman with hypertension and hyperlipidemia arrived to the ER after a syncopal episode. She was found in intermittent polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT). She was treated medically, briefly regaining sinus rhythm with possible ischemic changes (Figure 1). She was transferred to a cardiac catheterization capable facility. The study showed proximal left anterior [...]

Case Presentation: 80 year old male with no significant cardiac history presented with worsening dyspnea (NYHA I to NYHA III) over a period of 3 months with episodic dizziness. He underwent Holter monitoring, which showed 7% episodes of monomorphic non-sustained VT coinciding with symptoms. Echocardiogram showed preserved left and right ventricular systolic function. Stress testing [...]

Case Presentation: A 54-year-old woman presented to the emergency department with a 1-week history of exertional dyspnea and chest heaviness. Review of systems was remarkable for bilateral leg swelling and a 7-lbs weight gain over one week without orthopnea or PND. Physical examination revealed an irregularly irregular heart rhythm with pulse deficit, elevated JVP at [...]