Making sense of early repolarization

Abstract

p f “ a i n ( i For half a century, cardiologists have considered that “early repolarization” (ER) is not just an innocent electrocardiographic (ECG) finding but actually a marker of “good health.” Recently, however, we learned of a caveat: Individuals with ER remain healthy . . . until they die uddenly and prematurely.” The undeniable evidence demnstrating a statistically significant association between ER nd idiopathic ventricular fibrillation (VF) in case-control tudies and the increased sudden death rates observed mong patients with ER in large population-based prospecive studies shifted our approach. Indeed, consulting symptomatic young individuals with ER regarding their isk of sudden death became a relevant issue. Fortunately, new studies, including the study by Perez et al in this ssue of HeartRhythm, help us make sense of this dilemma.