ECG Challenges from AACN Advanced Critical Care

In my recent post the problem of ST segment elevation we discussed the difficulty of distinguishing between acute STEMI and the various mimics of acute myocardial infarction.

Here are some articles from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses that are worth reading.

ECG Challenges – Myocardial Infarction Mimics Q Waves
AACN Advanced Critical Care, Volume 18, Number 4, pp. 440-444

ECG Challenges – ECG Diagnosis of Acute Coronary Syndrome
AACN Advanced Critical Care Volume 19, Number 1, pp. 101-108

ECG Challenges – Myocardial Infarction Mimics ST Segments
AACN Advanced Critical Care, Volume 19, Number 2, 245-248

If you have access to the medical journals, these are also worth checking out:

Electrocardiographic ST-segment elevation: correct identification of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and non-AMI syndromes by emergency physicians. Acad Emerg Med. 2001 Apr;8(4):349-60. PMID: 11282670

ST-Segment Elevation in Conditions Other Than Acute Myocardial Infarction. N Engl J Med. 2003 Nov 27;349(22):2128-35. PMID: 14645641

You can test your ability to identify the STEMI mimics by taking the ACC-D2B ECG Challenge here.