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Worth Remembering: Cardiac Memory Presenting as Deep Anterior T-Wave Inversions Explained by Intermittent Left Bundle Branch Block.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Pierce, JB; Rosenthal, J; Stone, NJ
Published in: The American journal of cardiology
November 2020

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.

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Published In

The American journal of cardiology

DOI

EISSN

1879-1913

ISSN

0002-9149

Publication Date

November 2020

Volume

135

Start / End Page

174 / 176

Related Subject Headings

  • Humans
  • Female
  • Electrocardiography
  • Cardiovascular System & Hematology
  • Bundle-Branch Block
  • Aged
  • 3201 Cardiovascular medicine and haematology
  • 1102 Cardiorespiratory Medicine and Haematology
 

Citation

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ICMJE
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Pierce, J. B., Rosenthal, J., & Stone, N. J. (2020). Worth Remembering: Cardiac Memory Presenting as Deep Anterior T-Wave Inversions Explained by Intermittent Left Bundle Branch Block. The American Journal of Cardiology, 135, 174–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjcard.2020.08.032
Pierce, Jacob B., James Rosenthal, and Neil J. Stone. “Worth Remembering: Cardiac Memory Presenting as Deep Anterior T-Wave Inversions Explained by Intermittent Left Bundle Branch Block.The American Journal of Cardiology 135 (November 2020): 174–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjcard.2020.08.032.
Pierce JB, Rosenthal J, Stone NJ. Worth Remembering: Cardiac Memory Presenting as Deep Anterior T-Wave Inversions Explained by Intermittent Left Bundle Branch Block. The American journal of cardiology. 2020 Nov;135:174–6.
Pierce, Jacob B., et al. “Worth Remembering: Cardiac Memory Presenting as Deep Anterior T-Wave Inversions Explained by Intermittent Left Bundle Branch Block.The American Journal of Cardiology, vol. 135, Nov. 2020, pp. 174–76. Epmc, doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2020.08.032.
Pierce JB, Rosenthal J, Stone NJ. Worth Remembering: Cardiac Memory Presenting as Deep Anterior T-Wave Inversions Explained by Intermittent Left Bundle Branch Block. The American journal of cardiology. 2020 Nov;135:174–176.
Journal cover image

Published In

The American journal of cardiology

DOI

EISSN

1879-1913

ISSN

0002-9149

Publication Date

November 2020

Volume

135

Start / End Page

174 / 176

Related Subject Headings

  • Humans
  • Female
  • Electrocardiography
  • Cardiovascular System & Hematology
  • Bundle-Branch Block
  • Aged
  • 3201 Cardiovascular medicine and haematology
  • 1102 Cardiorespiratory Medicine and Haematology