14th International Congress
THE "NEW FRONTIERS"
OF ARRHYTHMIAS 2000

Jan. 29 - Feb. 5, 2000
Marilleva, Trento, Italy

RT-100

T-wave alternans: clinical and experimental observations

Nabil El-Sherif, Gioia Turitto*.
Cardiology Division, Department of Medicine, State University of New York Health Science Center and Veterans Affairs, New York Harbor Health Care System, Brooklyn, New York, USA

Introduction

Alternation of the duration and/or configuration of the repolarization wave of the body surface ECG, usually referred to as QT or T wave alternans (TWA), is seen under diverse experimental and clinical conditions^1,2. Interest in repolarization alternans is attributed to the hypothesis that it may reflect an underlying dispersion of repolarization. Although overt TWA in the ECG is not common, in recent years, digital signal processing techniques have made it possible to detect subtle degrees of TWA³. This suggests that the phenomenon may be more prevalent than previously recognized and may represent an important marker of vulnerability to ventricular tachyarrhythmias in general.