Emergency department patients with a prolonged corrected QT interval do not have increased thirty‐day mortality

Abstract

Prolonged QT interval (long QTc) predisposes to torsades de pointes, which can present with seizures, syncope, and sudden death. (1) While one‐third of emergency department (ED) patients may have a prolonged corrected QT (QTc) interval, (2) often discovered incidentally, clinical significance is uncertain. In hospitalized patients or long‐term community studies, long QTc is associated with increased mortality. (1, 3) The only ED‐based study estimating mortality found that 5% of admitted patients died, although discharged patients—nearly half the cohort—were not evaluated. (2) Our study purpose was to compare the 30‐day mortality rate of ED patients with long and normal QTc, including those discharged from the ED.

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