Exercise-induced ventricular arrhythmias and vagal dysfunction in Chagas disease patients with no apparent cardiac involvement

Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical

Henrique Silveira Costa¹  Maria Carmo Pereira Nunes¹  Aline Cristina De Souza¹  Marcia Maria Oliveira Lima¹  Renata Bicalho Carneiro¹  Giovane Rodrigo De Sousa¹  Manoel Otávio Da Costa Rocha¹ 

关键词: Chagas disease;    Exercise-induced ventricular arrhythmias;    Autonomic function;    Treadmill exercise testing;   

DOI  :  10.1590/0037-8682-0295-2014

来源: SciELO

【 摘 要 】

INTRODUCTION : Exercise-induced ventricular arrhythmia (EIVA) and autonomic imbalance are considered as early markers of heart disease in Chagas disease (ChD) patients. The objective of the present study was to verify the differences in the occurrence of EIVA and autonomic maneuver indexes between healthy individuals and ChD patients with no apparent cardiac involvement. METHODS : A total of 75 ChD patients with no apparent cardiac involvement, aged 44.7 (8.5) years, and 38 healthy individuals, aged 44.0 (9.2) years, were evaluated using echocardiography, symptom-limited treadmill exercise testing and autonomic function tests. RESULTS : The occurrence of EIVA was higher in the chagasic group (48%) than in the control group (23.7%) during both the effort and the recovery phases. Frequent ventricular contractions occurred only in the patient group. Additionally, the respiratory sinus arrhythmia index was significantly lower in the chagasic individuals compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS : ChD patients with no apparent cardiac involvement had a higher frequency of EIVA as well as more vagal dysfunction by respiratory sinus arrhythmia. These results suggest that even when asymptomatic, ChD patients possess important arrhythmogenic substrates and subclinical disease.

【 授权许可】

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