Ventricular tachycardia with left bundle branch block morphology in the absence of ischaemic heart disease--clinical and electrophysiological observations.

ABSTRACT

Clinical and electrophysiological features of 20 patients presenting with ventricular tachycardia (VT) of left bundle branch block (LBBB) morphology without evidence of coronary artery disease were studied. The mean age of the patients was 35.2 +/- 12 (range 15-57 years). The rate of VT varied between 140-240/min (182 +/- 80). Six (30%) patients experienced giddiness or syncope during palpitations. Structural heart disease was found in 10 (50%) of these patients, which included arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia in five, submitral left ventricular (LV) aneurysm in one, anterolateral LV dyskinesis in one, dilated cardiomyopathy in one, endomyocardial fibrosis in one and nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in one case. Ten patients were free of structural heart disease. Electrophysiological study was done in all patients. VT with same morphology as spontaneous VT was inducible in only 14 patients. Seventeen patients were treated medically with total or partial amelioration of symptoms. In three patients, two with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia and one with structurally normal heart, who were unresponsive to drug therapy, the VT focus could be mapped in right ventricular outflow tract and successful electrical ablation was done. Thus in patients who present with VT with LBBB morphology, the heart is often structurally normal but organic disease is not uncommon, and should be carefully searched.