Automated St-segment trending: what does it mean?

This article is the first segment of what we hope will become a regular feature in the Journal of Clinical Monitoring. The Monitoring Dilemmas series is designed for clinicians who are struggling with the information presented by new monitoring. The past decade has seen an explosion in the number and type of clinical monitors in daily use. Health-care providers are increasingly faced with a plethora of monitoring data, often without guidance on how to interpret it. Each Monitoring Dilemma consists of a case report that describes a clinical dilemma brought on by information from a monitor--a dilemma that would not even have been considered had the monitor not been in place or existence. The case reports are sent to experts in the particular fields concerned. To prevent "Monday morning quarterbacking," each reviewer is sent several envelopes, each containing information that progressively reveals more and more about the case. The case is presented as it actually evolved, and the experts comment as the case unfolds. Thus, the reader can share the dilemma with the reviewers, as well as with the original clinicians. We welcome your comments on this new section. We also welcome your own Monitoring Dilemmas. Please contact the Section Editor, Dr Partridge, for more details.