Cardiac Arrhythmias 1997

Front Matter....Pages I-XVII
Front Matter....Pages 1-1
What Are the Electrophysiological Mechanisms of Perpetuation of Atrial Fibrillation?....Pages 3-11
Vagal Tone: How Important Is It in Triggering Atrial Fibrillation?....Pages 12-17
Tachycardia Induced Atrial Fibrillation: What Incidence? How to Diagnose and Treat It?....Pages 18-23
Front Matter....Pages 25-25
Restoration of Sinus Rhythm: Pharmacological or Electrical?....Pages 27-32
Atrial Fibrillation: Which Drug to Prefer for Acute Cardioversion?....Pages 33-39
Drug Prevention of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation, When and How?....Pages 40-44
Antiarrhythmic Drug Administration before Electrical Cardioversion of Atrial Fibrillation: Is It Useful to Prevent Early Arrhythmia Recurrence?....Pages 45-50
Front Matter....Pages 51-51
AV-Nodal Ablation versus AV-Nodal Modification for Control of Atrial Fibrillation....Pages 53-57
AV Junction Modification for Atrial Fibrillation: Which End Points?....Pages 58-65
Heart Failure Patients with Atrial Fibrillation: How Important Is It to Regularize Ventricular Rhythm?....Pages 66-71
Catheter Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation: Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?....Pages 72-80
Front Matter....Pages 81-81
Restricted or Expanded Indications for Low-Energy Internal Cardioversion?....Pages 83-88
Internal Atrial Defibrillation: What Are the Effects on Mechanical Function?....Pages 89-99
Implantable Atrial Defibrillator: Which Results and Indications?....Pages 100-109
The Implantable Atrial Defibrillator: Are All the Problems Solved....Pages 110-112
Front Matter....Pages 113-113
Atrial Fibrillation and Thromboembolic Risk: Is It Safe to Cardiovert Acutely under Heparin?....Pages 115-124
Prevention of Thromboembolism in Atrial Fibrillation: When Antiplatelet Agents and When Anticoagulants?....Pages 125-133
Front Matter....Pages 135-135
Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia: Mechanism and Therapy....Pages 137-143
What Is the Relationship between Atrial Fibrillation and Flutter in Man?....Pages 144-151
Physiology of AV Junction: What Have We Learnt from Radiofrequency Ablation?....Pages 152-157
Front Matter....Pages 135-135
What Is the Clinical Significance of Ventricular Repolarization Abnormalities during Supraventricular Tachyarrhythmias?....Pages 158-165
Prolonged or Failed Attempts at RF Ablation of Accessory Pathways: What Are the Causes?....Pages 166-171
Front Matter....Pages 173-173
What Is the Clinical and Prognostic Significance of Atrioventricular and Intraventricular Conduction Defects?....Pages 175-182
What Is the Usefulness of Ventricular Premature Beats and Ventricular Late Potentials in the Thrombolytic Era?....Pages 183-187
What Is the Predictive Value of Heart Rate Variability and Baroreflex Sensitivity?....Pages 188-197
Clinical Usefulness of QT Prolongation, QT Dispersion and T-Wave Alternans....Pages 198-212
Risk Stratification after Acute Myocardial Infarction: What Is the Usefulness of Programmed Ventricular Stimulation?....Pages 213-221
Front Matter....Pages 223-223
After CAMIAT and EMIAT What is the Role for Amiodarone in the Prevention of Sudden Death....Pages 225-231
Beta-blockers Prevent Sudden Death: so Why Is Their Use Limited after Myocardial Infarction?....Pages 232-238
Prevention of Sudden Death in Post-MI Patients: What Is the Role of Non-Antiarrhythmic Drugs?....Pages 239-244
How to Treat High-Risk Post Myocardial Infarction Patients Based on MADIT and Other Recent Trials....Pages 245-250
Front Matter....Pages 251-251
Which Patients with ICD May Really Benefit from DDD Pacing, and Which Won’t?....Pages 253-257
Can Alternative Pacing Therapy Solve the Problem of Heart Failure Death in ICD Patients?....Pages 258-263
Have MADIT and Recent Post Myocardial Infarction Amiodarone Studies Changed the Classical Indications for ICD Implantation?....Pages 264-269
What Have We Learned from the US Experience on the Prophylactic Use of ICDs Following MADIT?....Pages 270-275
Risk Stratification of Post-MI Patients. What Are the Limitations of MADIT? What Does the Future Hold in Store?....Pages 276-282
Front Matter....Pages 283-283
Idiopathic Left Ventricular Tachycardia: What Is New in Pathophysiology? When and How to Perform RF Ablation?....Pages 285-291
Idiopathic Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Tachycardia: Which Substrate, Mechanism and Therapy?....Pages 292-299
Long QT Syndrome: from Molecular Biology to Clinical Management....Pages 300-303
Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy: Which Role for Apoptosis?....Pages 304-312
Front Matter....Pages 283-283
How to Diagnose and Manage Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy Today....Pages 313-322
“Brugada Syndrome”: A Structural Cardiomyopathy or a Functional Electrical Disease?....Pages 323-332
Front Matter....Pages 333-333
Management of Ventricular Tachyarrhythmias: Is Correction of Ischemia Sufficient?....Pages 335-344
Appropriate Indications for the Implantable Defibrillator....Pages 345-350
The ICD Cannot Impact Non-Arrhythmic Mortality. Or Can It?....Pages 351-358
How to Select Patients for ICD Implantation....Pages 359-360
Front Matter....Pages 361-361
Adenosine-Induced Paroxysmal Atrioventricular Block: a New Possible Cause of Unexplained Syncope?....Pages 363-367
Carotid Sinus Syndrome: What Is the Clinical Relevance of the Vasodepressor Component and How to Manage It?....Pages 368-375
Current Insight on the Pathophysiology of Vasovagal Syncope: What Have We Learned?....Pages 376-383
What Is the Role of Neurohumoral Agents in the Genesis of Vasovagal Syncope?....Pages 384-388
Vasovagal Syncope: To Tilt or Not to Tilt?....Pages 389-392
Syncope: How Should It Be Evaluated Today?....Pages 393-399
Front Matter....Pages 401-401
Is Tilt Testing Really Useful for Selecting Vasovagal Therapy?....Pages 403-410
Neurocardiogenic Syncope: What Role for Serotonin?....Pages 411-421
Development of an Implantable Drug Delivery System for the Treatment of Vasovagal Syncope: a Dream or a Real Prospect?....Pages 422-427
Sensor for Early Recognition of Imminent Vasovagal Syncope....Pages 428-434
Is Echocardiographic Investigation Useful for Establishing the Chronological Sequence of Events in Tilt Induced Syncope?....Pages 435-446
Front Matter....Pages 447-447
Pacing from Unconventional Sites: Who, When and Why?....Pages 449-453
Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy: Is DDD Pacing Really Useful?....Pages 454-465
Is There a Role for Left Ventricular Pacing in the Treatment of Congestive Heart Failure?....Pages 466-469
Front Matter....Pages 447-447
Mobitz Type I and First Degree AV Block: When to Permanently Pace?....Pages 470-475
Front Matter....Pages 477-477
Chronotropic Incompetence: How to Diagnose and Treat It?....Pages 479-484
New Sensors for Pacing and Diagnostic Application: What Is Their Clinical Uselfulness?....Pages 485-490
Single Lead DDD Stimulation: Is It a Real Progress?....Pages 491-496
What Is the Real Usefulness of the AutoCapture Function?....Pages 497-502
Front Matter....Pages 503-503
Pacemaker and ICD Infections: How to Manage Them?....Pages 505-513
Cellular Phones and Pacemakers: How Do They Interact?....Pages 514-521
Front Matter....Pages 523-523
Which Patients with Dilated Cardiomyopathy May Really Benefit from Dual-chamber Pacing?....Pages 525-531
Atrial Flutter Ablation: Long-Term Results with Standard Approach after Eight Years of Experience....Pages 532-544
Is the Evaluation of Heart Rate Variability Before ICD Discharge Useful to Understand the Mechanisms of Sudden Cardiac Death?....Pages 545-549
Is QRS Duration a Reliable Parameter in Discriminating between Supraventricular and Ventricular Arrhythmias?....Pages 550-555
Which Patients Are Good Candidates for Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation Today?....Pages 556-562