[Serum noradrenaline and ventricular tachycardia]

Sudden cardiac death is in the majority of cases due to ventricular tachycardia (VT) developing into ventricular flutter or ventricular fibrillation. It is therefore very important to detect patients with the risk of sudden cardiac death because their mortality depends on the treatment selected. The authors tried to shift the problem of sudden cardiac death into the sphere of cardioendocrinology. They examined the serum levels of norepinephrine (NE) in 17 patients. They collected simultaneously blood samples from the left cubital vein and right atrium after 5 minutes stimulation of the apex of the right ventricle, the frequency of stimulation being 100/min. In ten patients during electrophysiological examination VT was induced (four patients had persisting VT). The authors found a declining NE serum value in the periphery and rising intracardial NE serum level after ventricular stimulation. These differences were statistically significant in patients with VT but not in patients without VT.