Ahmed Mohammed A M, Clark Lauren M, Mardell Andrew, Veenhuyzen George D, Wilton Stephen B
Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary,Alberta, Canada.
Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
J Electrocardiol. 2017 Nov-Dec;50(6):975-977. doi: 10.1016/j.jelectrocard.2017.06.021. Epub 2017 Jun 28.
Carotid sinus massage is a useful diagnostic and therapeutic maneuver in patients with supraventricular tachycardia. Abrupt tachycardia termination with carotid sinus massage typically indicates a mechanism dependent on the atrioventricular node. Here, we present the case of a 79-year-old patient presenting with a long-RP supraventricular tachycardia terminated with carotid sinus massage that was proven invasively to be due to a focal atrial tachycardia. We discuss mechanistic explanations for this unusual phenomenon and review the literature.
