Cope's sign and complete heart block secondary to acute cholecystitis: A case report

Rationale: Cope's sign is reflex bradycardia seen in the patient presenting with symptoms of acute cholecystitis. This bradycardia may be due to vagally mediated cardio-biliary reflex. Many of these reflexes due to acute cholecystitis have similar clinical features (some electrocardiographic changes like bradycardia, complete heart block, and asystole) mimicking that of acute coronary syndrome. Patient's concern: A 60-year old male presented with symptoms of acute cholecystitis and referred to the emergency department with complete heart block and abdominal pain with hypotension requiring an emergency temporary pacemaker. Diagnosis: Cope's sign and complete heart block. Intervention: Emergency temporary cardiac pacemaker insertion. Outcomes: The patient was discharged after three days with regular follow-up and advice for laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Lessons: Complete heart block or any symptomatic bradycardia associated with abdominal pain should be under consideration of cholecystitis that may be associated with either presence or absence of gall stones due to cardio biliary reflex.

Unusual course of congenital complete heart block in an adult:A case report

BACKGROUND Congenital complete heart block(CCHB)with normal cardiac structure and negativity for anti-Ro/La antibody is rare.Additionally,CCHB is much less frequently diagnosed in adults,and its natural history in adults is less well known.CASE SUMMARY A 23-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital for frequent syncopal episodes.She had bradycardia at the age of 1 year but had never had impaired exercise capacity or a syncopal episode before admission.The possible diagnosis of acquired complete atrioventricular block was carefully ruled out,and then the diagnosis of CCHB was made.According to existing guidelines,permanent pacemaker implantation was recommended,but the patient declined.With regular follow-up for 28 years,the patient had an unusually good outcome without any invasive intervention or medicine.She had an uneventful pregnancy and led a normally active life without any symptoms of low cardiac output or syncopal recurrence.CONCLUSION This case implies that CCHB in adulthood may have good clinical outcomes and does not always require permanent pacemaker implantation.

Study of Bradyarrhythmias in Acute Myocardial Infarction

Background: Arrhythmias after acute myocardial infarction are common. Bradyarrhythmias need specific insight into when and how to treat them. Objectives: To delineate the incidence, course, and management of different types of bradyarrhythmias after acute myocardial infarction, the study period was five years. Methods: 453 patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI) were admitted to intensive care in five years. ECGs were analyzed for the presence of bradyarrhythmias and details of management. Results: 65 patients with bradycardia were found. Sinus bradycardia in 40, sick sinus syndrome in 10, junctional rhythm in 10, second-degree block in 10, complete heart block in 24. We divided patients with sinus bradycardia into a stable group and an unstable group. Unstable sinus bradycardia is more prevalent in cases with hypotension or shock, slower heart rates, gross or transmural infarction. Also, predictors of instability were changeable morphology of the “P” wave and inferior rather than anterior infarction. The indications and danger of atropine are defined. Complete heart block was found in 24 patients (0.053%). 13 were managed by drug therapy (isoprenaline, corticosteroids, and atropine);Eleven patients were paced. 14 out of the 24 patients died (58%), the total mortality rate among the 453 patients was 22%. The prognostic factors of CHB were defined. Techniques of introduction of the lead in RV without fluoroscopy are described. Conclusions: Sinus bradycardia in AMI is accompanied by a lower incidence of mortality. Atropine is not a safe drug to be given as routine. Complete heart block predictors of mortality are the association with heart failure, early-onset, and persistence of the block.