Electrocardiographic changes with intravenous pyelography in healthy individuals

Fifty apparently healthy individuals undergoing intravenous pyelography had electrocardiographic evaluation before, during, and after the examination. No patient had a major electrocardiographic change after contrast injection. Of the 7 patients with abnormal baseline electrocardiograms, all had a striking (greater than 40 beats per minute) rise in rate. The 43 patients with normal electrocardiograms had a small but significant rise in rate. No ischemic changes or major arrhythmias occurred. Although electrocardiographic aberrations were better correlated with baseline electrocardiograms than history or physical evaluation, our experience and a review of the literature confirms the safety of this examination in healthy people.