INTRODUCTION: The right ventricular myocardial infarction (RVMI) has traditionally been mainly related to inferior wall ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). This study assessed the RVMI electrocardiographic (ECG-RVMI) signs in relationship to ECG-based STEMI localization and to the infarct related artery in patients treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI). METHODS: Three hundred consecutive adult patients (107 females) were referred to catheterization laboratory with the acute STEMI diagnosis. In all patients, both the standard 12-lead ECGs and the right-sided precordial leads (V1R-V6R) were recorded. ECG-RVMI was diagnosed by ST segment elevation above 100μV in V4R. RESULTS: ECG signs of RVMI were found in 35 and 31 (23.8% for both) patients with inferior and anterior wall STEMI, respectively. In 32 ECG-RVMI patients, the right coronary artery (RCA) was occluded while in 34 patients, the occlusions were in the left anterior descending (LAD) or the left circumflex artery. No statistically significant differences were found in ECG-RVMI patients when comparing clinical variables between those with anterior and inferior wall STEMI. CONCLUSIONS: ECG signs of RVMI during acute STEMI are not uncommon. RCA was the infarction-related artery in only one half of these patients. Anterior wall STEMI and the LAD were associated with a significant proportion of ECG-RVMI cases.

Department of Internal Medicine and Cardiology University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine of Masaryk University Brno Czech Republic

Institute of Biostatistics and Analyses Faculty of Medicine of Masaryk University Brno Czech Republic

National Heart and Lung Institute Imperial College London United Kingdom

References provided by Crossref.org