Rapid access arrhythmia clinic for the diagnosis and management of new arrhythmias presenting in the community: a prospective, descriptive study.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether a rapid access approach is useful for the evaluation of patients with symptoms suggestive of a new cardiac arrhythmia.

DESIGN

Prospective, descriptive study.

SETTING

Secondary care based rapid access arrhythmia clinic in West London, UK.

PARTICIPANTS

Patients referred by their general practitioner or the emergency department with symptoms suggestive of a new cardiac arrhythmia.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Number of patients with a newly diagnosed significant arrhythmia. Number of patients with diagnosed atrial fibrillation. Number of eligible, moderate, and high risk patients treated with warfarin.

RESULTS

Over a 25 month period 984 referrals were assessed. The mean age was 55 years (range 20-90 years) and 56% were women. The median time from referral to assessment was one day. A significant cardiac arrhythmia was newly diagnosed in 40% of patients referred to the RAAC. The most common arrhythmia was atrial fibrillation, with 203 new cases (21%). Of these, 74% of eligible patients over 65 were treated with warfarin. Other arrhythmias diagnosed were supraventricular tachycardias (127 (13%)), conduction disorders (43 (4%)), and non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (21 (2%)). Vasovagal syncope was diagnosed for 53 patients (5%). The most frequent diagnosis was symptomatic ventricular and supraventricular extrasystoles (355 (36%)).

CONCLUSION

A rapid access arrhythmia clinic is an innovative approach to the diagnosis and management of new cardiac arrhythmias in the community. It provides a rapid diagnosis, stratifies risk, and leads to prompt initiation of effective treatment for this population.