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Updated: Jun 12, 2026
08:10
Estimating Bilateral Atrial Function by Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Feature Tracking in Patients with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation
Published on: July 20, 2022
Pseudo-atrial flutter/fibrillation in Parkinson's disease.
B Prabhavathi1, K S Ravindranath, Nagaraja Moorthy
1Department of Cardiology, Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiology, Bangalore, India.
Indian Heart Journal
|May 28, 2010
Summary
Parkinson's tremor can mimic atrial fibrillation on an electrocardiogram (ECG). Identifying these ECG artifacts is challenging due to varied patterns in patients with Parkinson's disease.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Neurology
- Medical Diagnostics
Background:
- Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder affecting motor control.
- Electrocardiograms (ECGs) are crucial for diagnosing cardiac arrhythmias like atrial fibrillation.
- Tremor is a common symptom in Parkinson's disease, potentially impacting physiological measurements.
Observation:
- An elderly male patient with Parkinson's tremor presented with an ECG pattern resembling atrial flutter/fibrillation.
- The observed ECG abnormalities were attributed to artifacts caused by the patient's tremor.
Findings:
- Parkinson's tremor can generate electrocardiographic artifacts that mimic genuine atrial flutter/fibrillation.
- The diverse range of electrocardiographic patterns in Parkinson's patients complicates the accurate identification of tremor-induced artifacts.
Implications:
- Accurate differentiation between tremor artifacts and true arrhythmias is essential for appropriate patient management.
- Clinicians should consider Parkinson's tremor as a potential source of ECG artifact in relevant patient populations.
- Further research may be needed to develop improved methods for distinguishing tremor artifacts from cardiac arrhythmias on ECGs.
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