ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine changes in cardiac monitoring, electrocardiography (ECG), or cardiac enzymes and, specifically, changes in the TpTe interval and TpTe/QT ratio in patients who presented with electrical injuries.

All patients aged over 18 years who had visited the Emergency Medicine Clinic between January 2011 and January 2014 because of electrical injuries and who were monitored for more than 24 h were included.

Seventy patients were included in the trial. ECG changes were present in 19 patients (27.1%) at various time points (0th, 6th, 12th, and 24th hour). The TpTe intervals of the patients at the time points were 64.5 (IQR: 21.25), 65 (IQR: 21.5), 64 (IQR: 20), and 64 (IQR: 20) ms, respectively, which were within the normal range. Although a statistical difference was present (p=0.033), superior analyses showed no significant difference among the groups. The TpTe/QT ratios of the patients were 0.18 (0.07), 0.18 (0.05), 0.18 (0.06), 0.18 (0.05), respectively, which were within the normal range (p=0.105). We compared the TpTe intervals and TpTe/QT ratios of patients with and without ECG changes and found that no statistically significant difference was present at all time points. Besides this, no difference in the TpTe intervals and TpTe/QT ratios was identified between the groups with elevated and non-elevated troponin levels.

The use of TpTe intervals and TpTe/QT ratios may not be the correct approach for predicting potential rhythm disorders in electrical injuries. In addition, there is no association of the TpTe interval or the TpTe/QT ratio with ECG changes or troponin elevation caused by electrical injuries.

Keywords: Electrical injuries, electrocardiography, TpTe interval