Torsades de pointes

Critical urgency
-Very severe

It is a type of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia with a very fast heart rate (between 160 and 200 beats per minute), with characteristic tracing on the electrocardiogram. 

There are multiple causes, both hereditary and acquired; usually ionic alterations in the blood or side effects of drugs.

It manifests with hypotension, dizziness, loss of consciousness, chest pain and sometimes sudden death.

Diagnosis is made by clinical history, complete physical examination and confirmed by electrocardiographic recording. 

Immediate treatment should be applied due to the associated risk of death. 

Bibliographic references
  1. Charles I Berul, Stephen P Seslar, Peter J Zimetbaum, Mark E Josephson. Acquired long QT syndrome. UpToDate, May 05, 2015.
  2. Moss AJ. Long QT Syndrome. JAMA 2003; 289:2041.
  3. Camm AJ, Janse MJ, Roden DM, et al. Congenital and acquired long QT syndrome. Eur Heart J 2000; 21:1232.
  4. Passman R, Kadish A. Polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, long Q-T syndrome, and torsades de pointes. Med Clin North Am 2001; 85:321.
  5. G.A. Sanz. Arritmias cardíacas. Torsade de pointes. Síndrome de QT largo. Farreras Rozman. Medicina Interna. Volumen I. Duodécima edición. 497:498.
  6. Sonia Bartolomé Mateos, Eduardo Castellanos Martínez, José Aguilar Florit. Manejo de las arritmias en urgencias. Manual de protocolos y actuación en urgencias. Hospital Virgen de la Salud, Complejo Hospitalario de Toledo. Tercera edición. 2010.243:262.
Author
Dr. Oscar Garcia-Esquirol
Copyright
© TeckelMedical 2026

Symptoms

    Low blood pressure


    Paleness


    Chest pain


    Dizziness


    Tachycardia