Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

MAY 13, 2024

Dr. Smith and other authors showed the utility of Speckle Tracking Strain Echo in this case report: Diagnosis of acute coronary occlusion in patients with non–STEMI by point-of-care echocardiography with speckle tracking Repeat ECG: Slightly less hyperacute T waves, likely indicating improving flow compared to the first ECG.

OR 108

OR STEMI Heart Attack Coronary 108

The Skeptics' Guide to EM

JULY 2, 2022

Major adverse cardiac event rates in moderate-risk patients: Does prior coronary disease matter? Major adverse cardiac event rates in moderate-risk patients: Does prior coronary disease matter? He has no history of coronary artery disease. Date: June 30th, 2022 Reference: McGinnis et al. AEM June 2022. AEM June 2022.

Coronary 100

Coronary Heart Attack ACS CAD 100

ALiEM

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

Intermediate-risk patients may be further stratified based on recent stress testing or coronary angiogram findings plus a modified HEART or Emergency Department Assessment of Chest Pain (EDACS) score. Encourage your ED to set up an algorithm that you can follow based on your laboratory’s assay. She does not smoke.

E-9-1-1 276

E-9-1-1 ED Coronary ALS 276

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

DECEMBER 5, 2023

Acute coronary syndrome in a pediatric patient? Ultimately, cardiac cath was done — revealing patent coronary arteries. Written by Kirsten Morrissey, MD with edits by Bracey, Grauer, Meyers, and Smith An older teen was transferred from an outside hospital with elevated serum troponin and and ECG demonstrating ST elevations.

Coronary 112

Coronary CAD ACS ALS 112

Emergency Medicine Cases

DECEMBER 16, 2019

Which had acute coronary occlusion? In this ECG Cases blog we look at seven patients with potentially ischemic symptoms and subtle ECG changes in the lateral leads. Introducing the concept of Occlusion MI - a paradigm shift in ECG diagnosis of MI. The post ECG Cases 4: Lateral STEMI or Occlusion MI?

STEMI 130

STEMI OR Coronary 130

EMS 12-Lead

APRIL 9, 2024

There is increased LV cavity dimensions with an increase in transient ischemic dilation, suggesting Left Main, or 3-vessel coronary artery disease. 2. Coronary angiography reveals significant and severe CAD involving all three epicardial vessels. He awoke earlier that morning in his usual state of health. Type I ischemia.

Coronary 290

Coronary ACS CAD ED 290

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

SEPTEMBER 25, 2024

Here is the post shock ECG: Cardiology was called stat for ischemic VT, query SCAD vs thrombotic occlusion vs coronary vasospasm. Cath lab was activated: There was no coronary artery disease, but there was spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) of the distal LAD, which was narrowed by 95%, and treated medically.

OR 66

OR STEMI ACS Coronary 66

Core EM

JULY 23, 2024

Isolated posterior MI is less common (3-8% of OMI) and presents with isolated ST-depressions in the anterior precordial leads (V1-V4), representing reciprocal changes to posterior left ventricular wall myocardial infarction as a result of distal occlusion of either the left circumflex or right coronary artery.

STEMI 173

STEMI Coronary Emergency Department OR 173

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

NOVEMBER 11, 2024

It can be seen in other forms of heart block as well (such as complete heart block). See Ken Grauer 's comment below for more on this. As this patient is scheduled for imminent elective surgery, it is important to determine whether this is Mobitz I (benign) or Mobitz II (requires pacing). So.Which is it? History is often helpful.

OR 71

OR E-9-1-1 Coronary 71

CanadiEM

NOVEMBER 7, 2023

For the October 2023 issue of CJEM, we collaborated with their team to present “Machine learning for the diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome using a 12-lead ECG: a systematic review”​1​​ in a visually simplified format. We often rely on our clinicians interpretation of the 12-lead, instead.

Coronary 52

Coronary OR 52

ACEP Now

JULY 7, 2023

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation Of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest presenting to the ED in refractory VF, a majority have significant coronary artery disease, much of which is amenable to percutaneous coronary intervention. Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is a commonly encountered entity in U.S.

Defibrillator 98

Defibrillator OR ALS Epinephrine 98

Emergency Medicine Cases

SEPTEMBER 12, 2023

The post ECG Cases 45 ECG in Weakness and Neurological Symptoms appeared first on Emergency Medicine Cases.

Coronary 296

Coronary OR EMS 296

First 10 EM

DECEMBER 25, 2023

Throughout the length of my career, we have consistently heard that less is more when it comes to blood transfusions (outside of the critically ill requiring massive transfusion, where the message, correct or not, has been the exact opposite).

OR 106

OR Coronary EMS 106

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

MAY 10, 2023

A CT Coronary angiogram was ordered. Here are the results: --Minimally obstructive coronary artery disease. --LAD Although a lesion is not visible anatomically on this CT scan, coronary catheter angiography could be considered based on Cardiology evaluation." A repeat troponin returned at 0.45 CAD-RADS category 1. --No

Coronary 52

Coronary STEMI CAD OR 52

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

OCTOBER 1, 2023

This patient in today's case was a man in his 60s with a known history of coronary disease, including prior stents. But in a patient with known coronary disease — who presents with new symptoms and the above ECG changes — any amount of Troponin elevation has to be taken as indicative of an acute event until proven otherwise.

OR 125

OR STEMI Coronary CAD 125

Emergency Medicine Cases

DECEMBER 20, 2023

ST/T changes: consider the differential including demand ischemia, associated electrolyte abnormalities, Brugada pattern from sodium channel blockade, and acute coronary occlusion vs vasospasm from cocaine. The post ECG Cases 47 – ECG Interpretation in Toxicology appeared first on Emergency Medicine Cases.

Coronary 207

Coronary OR Overdose EMS 207

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

JUNE 5, 2024

Why Was Cardiac Cath Negative for Coronary Disease? As noted by Dr. Nossen — this patient qualified as MINOCA ( M yocardial I nfarction with N on- O bstructive C oronary A rteries ) — since troponin was positive on his 2nd admission, yet there was no evidence of obstructive coronary disease on cath.

Coronary 106

Coronary ACS ALS OR 106

EMS 12-Lead

JULY 24, 2023

Category 1 : Sudden narrowing of a coronary artery due to ACS (plaque rupture with thrombosis and/or downstream showering of platelet-fibrin aggregates. It’s judicious, then, to arrange for coronary angiogram. Supply-demand mismatch (non-occlusive coronary disease, or exacerbation of preexisting flow insufficiency) a.

Coronary 130

Coronary ACS CAD ED 130

The Skeptics' Guide to EM

NOVEMBER 25, 2023

A 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) demonstrates ST elevations in leads II, III, and aVF with ST depressions in leads I and aVL and the team begins transport to the nearest percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) capable hospital. Background: We have covered the issue of heart attacks several times on the SGEM. Reference: Stopyra et al.

Heart Attack 278

Heart Attack STEMI Emergency Medical Services Coronary 278

EMDocs

NOVEMBER 6, 2023

Author: Brit Long, MD (@long_brit) // Reviewed by Alex Koyfman, MD (@EMHighAK) The American Heart Association 2023 Guideline for managing cardiac arrest or life-threatening toxicity due to poisoning was recently released. This post will focus on the key parts of the guideline that affect ED evaluation and management. Top 10 Take Home Pearls 1.

Naloxone 94

Naloxone OR Overdose BLS 94

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

SEPTEMBER 9, 2024

You can easily imagine this patient getting one of several diagnoses -- vasospasm, MINOCA , pericarditis, or maybe even no diagnosis at all beyond "non-obstructive coronary artery disease." Another option would be to use Optical Coherence Tomography for Coronary Imaging ). That plaque is at risk of thrombosing again.

OR 66

OR Coronary ACS EMS 66

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

This is diagnostic of full reperfusion.] An old ECG was found: As you can see, this patient has zero baseline STE, and normal T-waves. You never know if a patient's baseline has normal large STE or complete absence of STE, or somewhere in between. 90% of normals have some STE in V2 and V3. I focus my comment on this initial ECG in today's case.

OR 123

OR STEMI Coronary 123

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

JANUARY 25, 2024

A 40-something with severe diabetes on dialysis and with known coronary disease presented with acute crushing chest pain. As per Dr. Smith — today's patient is a 40-something year old patient with severe diabetes, renal failure and known coronary disease — who presents with “acute crushing CP”. Here is his ED ECG: What do you think?

Coronary 75

Coronary ED OR 75

Core EM

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

Isolated posterior MI is less common (3-8% of OMI) and presents with isolated ST-depressions in the anterior precordial leads (V1-V4), representing reciprocal changes to posterior left ventricular wall myocardial infarction as a result of distal occlusion of either the left circumflex or right coronary artery.

STEMI 130

STEMI Coronary Emergency Department OR 130

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

AUGUST 6, 2023

Doing so allows you to put YOURSELF to the TEST ( keeping in mind that all ECGs shown are from patients with chest pain suggestive of potential acute coronary disease ). Smith shows a new ECG. So — FREEZE the picture of each ECG on the screen — FORCE yourself to commit to an answer.

OR 96

OR STEMI Coronary 96

REBEL EM

SEPTEMBER 21, 2023

What Your Gut Says: The patient has a tachydysrhythmia which may be the presentation of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) even though the patient has no ischemic symptoms. Essentially, we are using the troponin assay to find patients with ACO who may be benefited by coronary interventions or risk factor modification.

Coronary 143

Coronary ACS ED OR 143

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

JULY 25, 2024

But cardiac arrest is a period of near zero flow in the coronary arteries and causes SEVERE ischemia. Smith's ECG Blog ( See My Comment in the March 1, 2023 post) — DSI does not indicate acute coronary occlusion! It also does not uniformly indicate severe coronary disease. The ECG shows severe ischemia, possibly posterior OMI.

Defibrillator 110

Defibrillator Coronary ACS Epinephrine 110

The Skeptics' Guide to EM

SEPTEMBER 28, 2024

The patient has no specific risk factors for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) or dissection. Case: You are working a busy shift in a rural emergency department (ED) and your excellent Family Medicine trainee presents a case of a 63-year-old woman with chest pain and some intermittent radiation into the inter-scapular region.

Emergency Department 201

Emergency Department ACS Coronary ALS 201

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

OCTOBER 20, 2024

The ST segment changes are compatible with severe subendocardial ischemia which can be caused by type I MI from ACS or potentially from type II MI (non-obstructive coronary artery disease with supply/demand mismatch). This patient is actively dying from a left main coronary artery OMI and cardiac arrest from VT/VF or PEA is imminent!

Coronary 125

Coronary ACS Emergency Department Defibrillator 125

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

OCTOBER 8, 2024

In the context of this woman in her 60s who has known coronary disease ( and who is now presenting with acute chest discomfort ) — I interpreted neighboring leads V1 and V2 as part of the same acute process suggested by the QRST in lead V3.

OR 107

OR STEMI ICU Coronary 107

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

AUGUST 9, 2019

Post by Smith and Meyers Sam Ghali ( [link] ) just asked me (Smith): "Steve, do left main coronary artery *occlusions* (actual ones with transmural ischemia) have ST Depression or ST Elevation in aVR?" Furthermore, among 35 patients with acute left main coronary artery occlusion, 9 presented with RBBB (mostly with LAFB) on the admission ECG.

Coronary 52

Coronary STEMI ACS ALS 52

EMS 12-Lead

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

Coronary thrombosis is a dynamic process of platelet aggregation and subsequent coagulation. During spontaneous reperfusion -- whether via thrombolysis, or recruitment of collateral circulation -- there exists characteristic ST/T changes on the ECG. Case Review: [link]

Coronary 130

Coronary OR 130

EMDocs

NOVEMBER 9, 2024

Spoon Feed Apixaban and a P2Y12 inhibitor* is likely the safest antithrombotic regimen for patients with atrial fibrillation and recent acute coronary syndrome requiring both oral anticoagulation and P2Y12 platelet inhibition. We always work hard, but we may not have time to read through a bunch of journals. It’s time to learn smarter.

ACS 78

ACS Coronary OR 78

Core EM

JANUARY 25, 2024

Risk factors that increase the likelihood of VT include history of previous myocardial infarction, known coronary artery disease, and structural heart disease. The differential diagnosis for this patient includes Ventricular Tachycardia (VT) and Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT) with aberrancy. Sources [link] [link] [link] [link].

Coronary 246

Coronary Emergency Department ED OR 246

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

NOVEMBER 1, 2022

The 50-something patient with history of coronary stenting and slightly reduced LV ejection fraction. which would suggest reduced rates of major adverse cardiac events with coronary artery bypass grafting." On the other hand, stable EKG over an hour in the setting of ongoing acute coronary syndrome is again unusual.

Overdose 52

Overdose OR Coronary ACS 52

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

NOVEMBER 29, 2023

This new ECG was still interpreted as STEMI and the patient was taken to the cath lab where the angiogram showed completely normal coronary arteries throughout. Smith : this ECG is definitely not OMI, but could be mistaken for Swirl pattern, which is a septal OMI with STE in V1 and STD in V6. Unfortunately no echo was available.

OR 116

OR STEMI EMS ED 116

Dr. Smith's ECG Blog

NOVEMBER 14, 2024

The patient is a 54yo man with diabetes and a known history of coronary diseae ( prior stent placement ) — who presented with new CP ( C hest P ain ) — therefore very high likelihood for having an acute coronary event. There are hyperacute T-waves in V3 and V4, further evidence of RV MI.

ED 116

ED Coronary Paramedic OR 116