The significance of exercise-induced ventricular arrhythmias

Prevalence of arrhythmias during exercise stress testing in patients with congenital heart disease and severe right ventricular conduit dysfunction

The utility of cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) to define the risks of arrhythmia and sudden death in postoperative patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) remains uncertain. As part of the US Melody valve trial, prospective standardized CPET, along with echocardiography, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and cardiac catheterization, were performed in 170 CHD patients with right ventricular outflow tract conduit dysfunction before Melody valve implantation. Ventricular premature complexes (VPC) occurred in 75 patients (44%) and were common during all phases of CPET (13% baseline, 24% exercise, and 23% recovery). Although no subjects had sustained arrhythmias, 2 had nonsustained ventricular tachycardia and 3 had nonsustained supraventricular tachycardia during recovery. There were no statistically significant differences between patients with or without VPCs in echocardiographic, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, or catheterization measures of cardiac function. However, clinical parameters of age, New York Heart Association functional class ≥II, and ≥3 cardiac surgical procedures were correlated with VPCs. Persistent ventricular ectopy during all exercise stages was present in 11 patients (6.5%), including 3 of the 4 patients who died during follow-up. In conclusion, VPCs were common during CPET, although they were not correlated with various measures of hemodynamic impairment; conversely, increased age, functional class, and number of surgeries were correlated with an increased prevalence of VPCs. CPET appears to be of minimal risk for sustained arrhythmia provocation in CHD patients with right ventricular outflow tract conduits and various degrees of advanced subpulmonary ventricular dysfunction.