Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois.
Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois; Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, Illinois.
Am J Cardiol. 2020 Nov 15;135:174-176. doi: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2020.08.032. Epub 2020 Aug 28.
Cardiac memory is a common cause of deep T-wave inversions (TWI) in the anterior precordial leads and can be difficult to distinguish from alternative causes of TWI such as myocardial ischemia. Cardiac memory is generally a benign condition except in the setting of prolonged QT when it can contribute to the precipitation of torsades de pointes. Herein, we describe the presentation and clinical course of a case of cardiac memory due to intermittent left bundle branch block (LBBB) that presented asymptomatically to our outpatient cardiology clinic with deep anterior TWI. We discuss common causes of and mechanisms underlying cardiac memory and how to distinguish it from alternative causes of TWI based on 12-lead electrocardiogram. In conclusion, intermittent LBBB is an under-recognized cause of cardiac memory that can present as deep anterior TWI mimicking cardiac ischemia, and awareness of this clinical entity may help prevent unnecessary invasive and expensive testing on otherwise healthy patients.
心脏记忆是导致前胸导联深 T 波倒置(TWI)的常见原因,并且很难与 TWI 的其他原因(如心肌缺血)区分开来。心脏记忆通常是良性的,但在 QT 延长的情况下,它可能会导致尖端扭转型室性心动过速的发生。在此,我们描述了一例间歇性左束支传导阻滞(LBBB)导致的心脏记忆的表现和临床过程,该患者无症状地到我们的门诊心脏病诊所就诊,表现为深前 TWI。我们讨论了心脏记忆的常见原因和机制,以及如何根据 12 导联心电图将其与 TWI 的其他原因区分开来。总之,间歇性 LBBB 是心脏记忆的一个未被充分认识的原因,它可以表现为深前 TWI,类似于心肌缺血,对这种临床实体的认识可能有助于避免对其他健康患者进行不必要的有创和昂贵的检查。