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Case Reports
. 2019 Oct-Dec;22(4):439-441.
doi: 10.4103/aca.ACA_98_18.

Management of ventricular storm with thoracic epidural anesthesia

Shakuntala Basantwani  1 , Shital R Shinde  1 , Bharati Tendolkar  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Management of ventricular storm with thoracic epidural anesthesia

Shakuntala Basantwani et al. Ann Card Anaesth. 2019 Oct-Dec.

Abstract

The incidence of recurrent ventricular arrhythmias is increasing these days. Ventricular electrical storm can be of three types as follows: monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT), polymorphic VT, and ventricular fibrillation. The mechanism of ventricular storm is complex, and its management is quite a challenge for the clinicians due to its life-threatening consequences. We report a case of ventricular storm in whom all the conventional methods for the management of arrhythmias were ineffective, and the case is managed effectively with thoracic epidural anesthesia (TEA). A 60-year-old male patient was admitted to recurrent ventricular arrhythmias. He received defibrillator shocks and other antiarrhythmic drugs, but he was not responding to the treatment. We managed to revert the ventricular arrhythmias to the sinus rhythm with TEA. Ventricular storm is a challenging complication, which can be managed effectively with timely diagnosis and effective management.

Keywords: Epidural anesthesia; monomorphic VT; ventricular storm.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Preprocedure electrocardiogram showing ventricular tachycardia
Figure 2
Figure 2
Postprocedure electrocardiogram showing normal QT interval after reverting to sinus rhythm
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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