Right ventricular myocardial infarction

Abstract

Perhaps the most important point concerning right ventricular myocardial infarction is to be alert for its occurrence. Approximately one fifth of all infarctions and one third of all inferior infarctions have some right ventricular involvement. All right ventricular infarcts are probably associated with inferior left ventricular infarctions. The correct diagnosis alters the treatment of a patient with a low cardiac-output state that complicates the acute infarction. The prognosis after a right ventricular myocardial infarction would seem to be related to the degree of left ventricular dysfunction associated with the original infarction.