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Advances in Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology: Cardiac Memory
Advances in Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology: Cardiac Memory
Cardiac Memory
Diagnostic Tool in the Making
Alexei Shvilkin, MD; Henry D. Huang, MD; Mark E. Josephson, MD
lar contraction might open new perspectives in wide QRST In humans, 1 week of ventricular pacing resulted in sig-
morphology analysis by establishing parallels between elec- nificant QT interval shortening during continuous pacing.
tric and mechanical functions of the heart. However, when normal conduction was restored and QRS
became narrow, QT interval became prolonged compared with
the baseline, indicating that the heart has adapted to the new
History, Properties, and Adaptive
activation sequence.14,15 No evidence of hypertrophy, changes
Nature of Cardiac Memory in myocardial blood flow, and hemodynamics were observed
In 1915, White1 was the first to observe the phenomenon of
in the setting of CM after 21 days of ventricular pacing in dogs
transient TWI after single ventricular premature beats. Later
further suggesting the adaptive nature of this process.16
in the 1940s, TWIs after conversion to sinus rhythm were
described after paroxysmal tachycardias.2 Since then abnor-
mal T waves of various duration have been documented after
Electrophysiology, Molecular
intermittent ventricular pre-excitation,3–5 ventricular pacing,6,7 Mechanisms, and Triggers of CM
intermittent left bundle branch block (LBBB),8,9 ventricular Repolarization Gradients
tachycardia,10 and even QRS widening associated with sodium The ST segment and T waves on the 12-lead ECG are con-
channel blocker toxicity.11 current with the repolarization phase of the cardiac cycle.
In 1982, Rosenbaum et al10 introduced the term heart mem- The concordance of QRS and T wave in a normal human
ory and presented the first unified hypothesis of how abnor- ECG for many years was explained by the presence of a
mal ventricular activation could lead to the development of transmural repolarization gradient resulting from a shorter
T-wave abnormalities regardless of the wide QRS cause by epicardial action potential duration (APD) so that epicar-
a process he referred to as electrotonic modulation. In this dial cells being depolarized last repolarize first. Not surpris-
seminal article, 3 principles of CM were formulated: (1) the ingly such 1-dimensional explanation applied to a complex
475
476 Circ Arrhythm Electrophysiol April 2015
Figure 1. A, Development and partial resolution of cardiac memory (CM) in a chronic canine model of epicardial left ventricular pacing.
Leads I, aVF, and frontal plane vectorcardiogram shown at baseline, during ventricular pacing, 1 hour after interruption of ventricular pac-
ing for 7, 21, and 3 days after cessation of ventricular pacing. Leads I and aVF are shown (top). At baseline (left column), the T waves dur-
ing sinus rhythm are positive in both leads. Left ventricular pacing (column 2) results in wide QRS with secondary T-wave abnormalities
and discordant T waves. Pacing interruption after 7 and 21 days results in the development of progressive (accumulation) T-wave inver-
sions during sinus rhythm that persist during day 3 of recovery. The polarity of the T waves corresponds to the polarity of the paced QRS
complex. Bottom, The corresponding frontal plane vectorcardiograms are displayed demonstrating gradual alignment of the T-vector
loop during sinus rhythm with the QRS loop during ventricular pacing. Note the increase in the T-vector amplitude and rotation toward the
direction of the paced QRS vector (arrows). Cross-hair represents calibration at 1 mV. B, Quantitative assessment of CM. The baseline
and memory T-vector loops superimposed. CM can be measured by the change in the T-vector direction, amplitude, and 3-dimensional
distance (T peak displacement [TPD] measured in mV) between the T-vector peaks (T control represents the baseline T-vector loop and T
memory represents the T-vector loop after CM induction). TPD is the preferred method of CM measurement. Adapted from Yu et al19 with
permission of the publisher. Copyright © 1999, Wolters Kluwer Health. Adapted from Plotnikov et al32 with permission of the publisher.
Copyright © 2001, European Society of Cardiology. Authorization for this adaptation has been obtained both from the owner of the copy-
right in the original work and from the owner of copyright in the translation or adaptation.
Shvilkin et al Cardiac Memory 477
Authorization for this adaptation has been obtained both from the
owner of the copyright in the original work and from the owner of
Memory in Narrow QRS Rhythms copyright in the translation or adaptation.
Why Was CM Initially Described Only During
Normal Ventricular Activation including pre-excitation, ventricular tachycardia, and conduc-
Traditionally, CM has been associated with TWI during sinus tion abnormalities.
rhythm with narrow QRS for several reasons: Figure 3 demonstrates CM signature after ablation of a left
First, normal T waves during sinus rhythm are positive in posteroseptal bypass tract. Figure 3A shows baseline ECG
most leads, whereas TWI is usually associated with patho- with manifest pre-excitation. ECG in Figure 3B obtained
logical conditions (eg, ischemia, strain, cerebral hemorrhage). 30 minutes after the bypass tract ablation demonstrates tall
Therefore, T-wave changes are more likely to be noticed when peaked T waves across the precordium as well as inferior TWI
TWI is present. Second, in the most common situations lead- corresponding to the vector of the delta wave. Tall positive
ing to CM development (LBBB, right ventricular apical pac- memory T waves in the right precordial leads can be easily
ing), wide QRS deflections initiating CM are negative in the confused with hyperkalemia or ischemia. ECG in Figure 3C
majority of the leads and therefore produce TWI. obtained 1 week after ablation shows a significant decrease
Third, large secondary repolarization changes during wide in the amplitude of both positive and negative T-wave deflec-
QRS rhythms mask CM until the QRS becomes narrow tions. ECG completely normalized in 6 months (not shown).
(Figure 2). A year later the patient was again noted to have T-wave abnor-
However, as both depolarization and repolarization of the malities on his routine ECG. Follow-up Holter monitoring
heart occur in a 3-dimensional space, CM always produces a showed intermittent pre-excitation without any arrhythmias.
mixture of positive and negative T-wave changes based on the In this case, CM was the only sign of the partial recurrence of
wide QRS vector polarity. Although positive T-wave changes antegrade conduction over the bypass tract.
are often overlooked, they are as important as TWI in diagnos- Another patient with structurally normal heart and frequent
tic applications of CM as will be seen below. episodes of palpitations presented with T-wave abnormalities
during sinus rhythm on his ECG (Figure 4, left). Based on the
Detecting the Presence and Localizing Intermittent presence of the inferior TWI and tall peaked T waves in the
Wide QRS Rhythms right precordial leads in the absence of ischemia, one can sus-
CM signature consisting of the specific combinations of pect the presence of a wide QRS rhythm originating in the infe-
negative and positive T waves can give a clue to the pres- rior septal aspect of the left ventricle. Indeed, the patient had
ence and localization of intermittent wide QRS rhythms verapamil-sensitive ventricular tachycardia (Figure 4, right).
478 Circ Arrhythm Electrophysiol April 2015
CM signature of intermittent LBBB will be discussed in the attributable to the proximal left anterior descending coronary
following section along with right ventricular pacing. artery lesion involves the left ventricle, the ischemic precordial
CM-related T-wave changes after intermittent right bundle TWI has a rightward axis in the frontal plane and is character-
branch block have not been described. The likely reason for that is ized by TWI in leads I and aVL (Figure 5, left). The rare cases
that the delayed activation of the right ventricle produces mostly of right coronary artery ischemia producing precordial TWI
positive deflections in the right precordial leads resulting in an
with the leftward axis (Figure 5, middle) have deeper TWI in
increase in the positive T-wave amplitude that goes unnoticed.
inferior leads than that in the precordial leads. However, right
Distinguishing Between TWI From CM and ventricular apical pacing and LBBB produce QRS vectors pos-
Ischemia itive in leads I and aVL resulting in positive T waves in these
Since the time CM was first described, its similarity to isch- leads on resumption of normal conduction consistent with CM
emic TWI made it a significant confounder in the diagnosis of principles. It also produces precordial TWI deeper than the
myocardial ischemia often resulting in excessive cardiac test- inferior TWI (Figure 5, right).
ing. In particular, precordial TWI because of intermittent right The combination of
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Figure 4. Cardiac memory (CM) in a setting of recurrent monomorphic ventricular tachycardia. Left, Inferolateral T-wave inversions (TWI
lead III>TWI lead II) and unusually tall T waves in leads V2–V3 during sinus rhythm suggest CM due to intermittent wide QRS originating
in the inferoseptal area of the left ventricle. Right, Spontaneous monomorphic ventricular tachycardia observed later in the same patient.
Bottom, Rhythm strip (lead II) during tachycardia demonstrating capture beat.
Shvilkin et al Cardiac Memory 479
Although not studied in larger prospective trials, these easily missed) in contrast to the narrow QRS rhythm, where T vec-
applicable criteria have been used successfully in clinical prac- tor becomes larger and rotates toward the paced QRS. Using
tice to distinguish between CM and ischemia.35 Because the axis quantitative vectorcardiograpic analysis, CM can be detected in
during right ventricular pacing and LBBB is similar with posi- paced rhythm within minutes after the onset of pacing.
tive QRS complex in leads I and aVL, the criteria can also be
extended to the cases of TWI because of intermittent LBBB.36
One of the study limitations is its relatively small size.
Although not observed in the original study, some distal left
anterior descending coronary artery ischemia might not pro-
duce enough T-wave right axis deviation to cause negative T
waves in leads I and aVL.
The other limitation in using this diagnostic tool is a con-
cern that T-wave changes because of CM can counterbalance
or obscure ischemic TWI when CM and ischemia occur simul-
taneously in the same patient. No systematic data are available
in patients with T-wave abnormalities because of coronary
artery disease but our preliminary results in this population
indicate that CM does not reverse ischemic TWI minimizing
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this risk. Notably, when TWI in leads I and aVL are present at
baseline as the result of the structural heart disease, T waves
usually stay inverted, despite the development of CM (T vec-
tor never fully aligns with the paced QRS vector).
The proposed diagnostic criteria in the future can be further
improved by the use of vectorcardiography techniques.
Clinical Application of CM in Wide QRS: Age precordial T-wave amplitude (as approximations of the QRS and
Determination of LBBB T vectors, respectively) was also developed. A conservative cutoff
The finding that CM decreases discordant T-wave amplitude of S/T<2.5 allowed to detect 100% of the new LBBBs.
in wide QRS rhythms has important clinical implications. For The T-vector magnitude in LBBB changes significantly dur-
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example, it can be used to determine whether LBBB is old or ing the first 24 hours. In cases of painful LBBB syndrome when
new which becomes valuable in the setting of chest pain. ECG is recorded within seconds/minutes of symptoms onset
For many years, American College of Cardiology/American (often during an exercise stress test), S/T ratio can be as low as
Heart Association guidelines for the management of patients 1.4. The majority of the T-wave changes occur within the first
with ST-segment–elevation myocardial infarction considered 24 hours of LBBB persistence when it assumes chronic QRST
new or presumed new LBBB, a class I indication for reperfu- configuration.10 In the true chronic LBBB, the S/T ratio is close
sion therapy when associated with symptoms suggestive of to ≥3.0 (Figure 7A and 7C). It is important to recognize that
ischemia creating a decision-making dilemma. Recently, this LBBB is often a dynamic phenomenon and can be intermittent
recommendation has been withdrawn37 largely because of the or rate-dependent. Repeated episodes of intermittent LBBB can
inability to determine the LBBB age which resulted in overly
aggressive management of the chronic LBBB patients.
In clinical practice determining whether LBBB is actually
new is virtually impossible as prior ECGs for comparison
even if available are usually dated well beyond the relevant
period of time (from the onset of symptoms which ranges
from minutes to a few hours). LBBB in the vast majority of
patients presenting with chest pain is old.
The criterion for LBBB age determination was developed38 on
the premise that new LBBB would have larger T vector (and taller
T waves on a 12-lead ECG) compared with the old one in accor-
dance with CM development in wide QRS rhythm (Figure 7). As
the duration of LBBB increases the discordant secondary T waves
become smaller (Figure 7A). A retrospective analysis >1700
LBBB ECGs showed that indeed the new onset LBBB (defined Figure 8. Correlation between cardiac memory (CM) magnitude
(measured during DDD pacing) and the left ventricular dys-
as <24-hour duration) was rare (3%) and had significantly larger
synchrony (difference in time to the maximal longitudinal strain
T waves (as well as smaller QRS vector magnitude) compared between septal and lateral left ventricular walls). With the increase
with the chronic LBBB (Figure 7B and 7C). Although the best in dyssynchrony CM magnitude decreases. Adapted from
results in LBBB age determination were achieved using quantita- Shvilkin41 with permission of the publisher. Copyright © 2013,
Springer. Authorization for this adaptation has been obtained both
tive vectorcardiography technique, a simplified 12-lead ECG cri- from the owner of the copyright in the original work and from the
terion using the ratio of the maximal precordial S wave/maximal owner of copyright in the translation or adaptation.
Shvilkin et al Cardiac Memory 481
ing. If true, this can open an opportunity to assess the risk of modulation of myocardial repolarization produced by ectopic activation
pacing-induced ventricular dysfunction based on ECG analy- in isolated rabbit hearts. Evidence for cardiac “memory”. Circulation.
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