Swallowing syncope: complex mechanisms of the reflex.

A 69-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital for the examination of syncope. When she ate solid food, she had dizziness or loss of consciousness. The ambulatory ECG suggested sino-atrial block during swallowing with a maximum sinus pause of 6 seconds. An electrophysiologic study revealed pre-existing sinus node dysfunction, which was exaggerated by the balloon inflation in the esophagus. Atropine counteracted the slowing of the basal sinus rate induced by esophageal pressure, but it did not block the effect on the maximum sinus node recovery time. This observation suggested that the syncope was mediated partly by a non-vagal mechanism.

Ebstein anomaly associated with unusual conduction delay and sick sinus syndrome.

A 64-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of palpitation, dyspnea on effort, and facial edema. The echocardiographic diagnosis was Ebstein anomaly. Although the 12-lead electrocardiogram showed an atrial rate of 150 beats/min and no typical flutter wave, the electrophysiological study showed counterclockwise rotation of excitation along the tricuspid annulus. Because of sinus arrest and syncope, a permanent pacemaker was implanted, but the right atrium was not captured by electrical stimulation at 5 V/0.4 ms, except for the orifice of coronary sinus, and the intracardiac P wave was only 0.2 mV or less. This is a rare case of Ebstein anomaly characterized by unusually prolonged conduction in the atrium, the basis of which was global myocardial damage, including the ventricles.

Neurally mediated syncope manifesting during atrial fibrillation: a case report.

A 64-year-old male was admitted to hospital because of repeated episodes of syncope and palpitation. Ambulatory monitoring revealed paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) as the cause of palpitation; he did not have structural heart disease. The induction of AF by rapid pacing (50 Hz for 1 s) in an upright position provoked syncope with a vasodepressor response. Atropine sulfate blocked the induction of syncope. The possible etiology was neurally mediated syncope that manifested only during AF, which suggests that the abnormal vagal activity during AF in this case exaggerated the vasodepessor response while upright.

Clinical significance of preserving spontaneous QRS wave in the therapy of DDD pacing for sick sinus syndrome.

The aim of this clinical crossover study was to elucidate the effects of atrioventricular (AV) synchronous pacing on cardiac function in patients with sick sinus syndrome (SSS). Thirty SSS patients, each with dual chamber pacemaker (DDD), were enrolled and divided into two groups based on echocardiographic findings. Group A (n = 16) had hypertensive heart disease (wall thickness 11 approximately 12 mm) or mitral or aortic regurgitation (Grade I or II). Group B (n = 14) had no organic heart disease. Three successive 3-month pacing periods were tested. For the first 3 months, long AV delay that achieved > 80% ventricular sensing was chosen. For the next 3 months, AV delay was abbreviated to achieve > 80% ventricular pacing at an optimal AV interval. For the final 3 months, the first setting was resumed. At the end of each period, M mode echocardiography, pulsed-Doppler study, and measurement of plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level were conducted. In both groups, echocardiographic parameters were not significantly changed during the evaluation. In group A, plasma BNP level was significantly higher at the end of the short AV delay period than at the long AV delay period (P = 0.009), while in group B it did not differ during each period. AV synchronous pacing (> 80% ventricular pacing) in the SSS patients with a DDD pacemaker implanted could increase the ventricular load, and it is better to preserve the spontaneous QRS with the DDD mode with prolonged AV delay in patients with mild hypertensive or valvular disease.