[Value and methods of temporary stimulation of the heart to prevent dangerous arrhythmias]

The authors assessed the efficacy of the prevention of frequently or continuously relapsing supraventricular (7 cases) and ventricular (8 cases) tachycardia as well as ventricular fibrillation (16 patients) with the help of overdrive pacing. In 28 out of 31 patients (90.3%) the therapy was successful in preventing arrhythmia relapses including patients with the syndrome of an increased QT interval. Overdrive pacing of the atria was more effective as compared to that of the ventricles (93% versus 71.4%). The effective frequency of overdrive pacing of the atria was 40.5% lower as against ventricular stimulation. The suppression of ectopic rhythm was achieved by increasing the heart rate on the average from 82.4 +/- 5.9 to 108.7 +/- 10.4 per minute. The administration of antiarrhythmic drugs made it possible to decrease significantly the frequency of electric impulses.