ECG artefacts mimicking atrial flutter in posterior fossa surgery

ECG artefacts are defined as abnormalities in the monitored ECG, which result from measurement of cardiac potentials on the body surface and are not related to the electrical activity of the heart. In the operation theatre, the use of various types of electrical equipment may interfere with ECG inte...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:BMJ case reports 2015-05, Vol.2015, p.bcr2014208617
Main Authors: Rudigwa, Priya, Babu Elakkumanan, Lenin, Rajan P, Sakthi, Satya Prakash, M V
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Asia
Atrial Fibrillation - diagnosis
Atrial Flutter - diagnosis
Cardiac arrhythmia
Cranial Fossa, Posterior - surgery
Electrocardiography
Electromyography
Female
Humans
Indian Sub-Continent
Monitoring, Physiologic - methods
Predictive Value of Tests
Reminder of Important Clinical Lesson
Surgery
Unnecessary Procedures
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:ECG artefacts are defined as abnormalities in the monitored ECG, which result from measurement of cardiac potentials on the body surface and are not related to the electrical activity of the heart. In the operation theatre, the use of various types of electrical equipment may interfere with ECG interpretation. We describe our experience with artefacts resembling atrial fibrillation when a nerve integrity monitoring device was used on a patient undergoing posterior fossa surgery for epidermoid tumour. These artefacts resemble serious arrhythmias and may result in unwanted interventions. To enable better identification of such artefacts, a 12-lead ECG should be considered as it will display rhythm in all the leads; while artefacts will present in only a few leads, true arrhythmia will be present in all the 12 leads. Our case report aims to increase awareness regarding ECG artefacts and to explain how to distinguish them from actual arrhythmias.
ISSN:1757-790X
1757-790X
DOI:10.1136/bcr-2014-208617