198 Early Repolarization Abnormalities following Resuscitation after Cardiac Arrest

BackgroundEarly repolarization abnormalities on electrocardiogram (ECG) are common immediately after cardiac arrest.MethodsWe studied 227 consecutive patients presenting with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. All these patients had successful cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and acute coronary angiography. The first ECG recorded after successful resuscitation was analyzed by 2 independent cardiologists. Patients were categorized according to their repolarization pattern:Pattern 1:No ST segment elevation nor early repolarization (ERep)Pattern 1:ST segment elevation without ERepPattern 1:ST segment elevation and ERepPattern 1:ERep onlyERep was defined as elevation of the QRS–ST junction (J point) of at least 1 mm above the baseline as QRS slurring or notching in at least two consecutive inferior and/or lateral leads.ST segment elevation was defined as an elevation 40 ms after the J point of at least 1 mm in 2 consecutive limb leads and/or 2 mm in two consecutive precordial leads.ResultsPattern 1, 2, 3, 4 were respectively found in 113 (50%), 74(33%), 19 (8%) and 20 (9%) patients (table). Cardiac arrest was due to acute myocardial ischemia in 43%, 80%, 42%, 15% of patients in group 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively (p