Related Experiment Videos
Tricyclic medication in children and the QT interval: case report and discussion
1Division of Child Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Ontario.
Objective:
To identify the necessity for close monitoring of the QT interval in children and adolescents treated with tricyclics.
Method:
Guidelines for permissible ECG changes are reviewed and a case report of a 12-year-old girl with idiopathic long QT syndrome, no history of cardiac disorder, a questionable family history, and normal physical examination and baseline ECG is presented.
Results:
Marked increase in QT corrected for heart rate (QTc) occurred on low-dose tricyclic. Possible factors in deaths on desipramine are reviewed.
Conclusion:
It is recommended that children and adolescents on tricyclics receive an ECG at baseline and after each dose increase. Recommendations are made regarding ECG parameters and indications for cardiac consultation.