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Patterns of Electrocardiographic Abnormalities in Children with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

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Abstract

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a common cardiomyopathy in children, is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Early recognition and appropriate management are important. An electrocardiogram (ECG) is often used as a screening tool in children to detect heart disease. The ECG patterns in children with HCM are not well described.ECGs collected from an international cohort of children, and adolescents (≤ 21 years) with HCM were reviewed. 482 ECGs met inclusion criteria. Age ranged from 1 day to 21 years, median 13 years. Of the 482 ECGs, 57 (12%) were normal. The most common abnormalities noted were left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in 108/482 (22%) and biventricular hypertrophy (BVH) in 116/482 (24%) Of the patients with LVH/BVH (n = 224), 135 (60%) also had a strain pattern (LVH in 83, BVH in 52). Isolated strain pattern (in the absence of criteria for hypertrophy) was seen in 43/482 (9%). Isolated pathologic Q waves were seen in 71/482 (15%). Pediatric HCM, 88% have an abnormal ECG. The most common ECG abnormalities were LVH or BVH with or without strain. Strain pattern without hypertrophy and a pathologic Q wave were present in a significant proportion (24%) of patients. Thus, a significant number of children with HCM have ECG abnormalities that are not typical for “hypertrophy”. The presence of the ECG abnormalities described above in a child should prompt further examination with an echocardiogram to rule out HCM.

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Abbreviations

HCM:

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

ECG:

Electrocardiogram

PACES:

Pediatric and Congenital Electrophysiology Society (PACES)

LVH:

Left ventricular hypertrophy

RVH:

Right ventricular hypertrophy

BVH:

Biventricular hypertrophy

ICD:

Implantable cardioverter device

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Acknowledgements

Many thanks to the PACES (The Pediatric and Congenital Electrophysiology Society), and, in particular, to the PACES-HCM study group for their contributions to this project.

Funding

This study was supported by Medtronic External Research Protocol Number CR-1651.

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MM, SB, and AM wrote the main manuscript text. MM and SB prepared all the figures. All authors reviewed the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Seshadri Balaji.

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Dr Balaji is a consultant to Milestone Pharmaceuticals and Janssen Pharmaceuticals.

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Marshall, M., Malik, A., Shah, M. et al. Patterns of Electrocardiographic Abnormalities in Children with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. Pediatr Cardiol (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00246-023-03252-4

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