Abstract
A 70-year-old man with end-stage heart failure and a continuous-flow left ventricular assist device received repeated electrical discharges from his biventricular implantable cardiac defibrillator. Although the electrocardiogram demonstrated ventricular fibrillation, the patient was awake and in no distress. A focused transthoracic echocardiogram was performed to assess ventricular function revealing simultaneous atrial sinus rhythm and ventricular fibrillation. This clinical scenario highlights a unique clinical finding, the complexity of the care of continuous-flow left ventricular assist device patients, and the challenges of intensivist-performed bedside focused transthoracic echocardiogram.
Original language | English (US) |
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Journal | Journal of Investigative Medicine High Impact Case Reports |
Volume | 2 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 13 2014 |
Keywords
- Intensivist
- LVAD
- Sinus rhythm
- TTE
- Ventricular fibrillation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Epidemiology
- Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
- Safety Research