Fifty Years of Ventricular Tachycardia in a Single Patient

Abstract

We report a patient who first presented during childhood in the early 1960's with several episodes of ventricular tachycardia (VT) and we describe her management which reflected the best medical knowledge at the time. She then presented more than 50 years later, again with VT, at which time a definitive diagnosis of the underlying cause was made. Her case illustrates the evolution in the understanding and management of VT over the past 50 years. This in turn reflects the clinical and technological advances in the management of cardiovascular disease over time.

Keywords: Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy; Dysplasia; Tachycardia; Ventricular.

Fig 1.

Electrocardiogram showing ventricular tachycardia.

Fig 2.

Electrocardiogram reported as showing right ventricular hypertrophy with strain pattern (arrows).

Fig 3.

Electrocardiogram form 2018 showing ventricular tachycardia.

Fig 4.

12-lead electrocardiogram showing right bundle branch block, anterior T-wave inversion, and an epsilon wave (arrows).

Fig 5.

Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging showing a severely dilated right ventricle with multiple areas of wall thinning. There is aneurysm formation within the apical region (arrow). In contrast, the left ventricle is undilated.