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Does ST Elevation in Lead aVR Require an Emergent Trip to the Catheterization Laboratory?

To identify the key insights or developments described in this article
1 Credit CME

A patient in their 50s with a history of hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heavy alcohol use, and tobacco use presented to the emergency department with a 2-month history of nausea and vomiting that worsened in the 3 days prior to presentation to the point that the patient had been unable to tolerate anything by mouth. The patient denied chest pain or dyspnea. On arrival, the patient was afebrile with a heart rate of 129 beats/min, blood pressure of 70/48 mm Hg, and oxygen saturation of 94% on room air. Physical examination revealed nonlabored respirations with clear lung fields bilaterally, normal heart sounds with no appreciable murmurs, and warm and well-perfused extremities. There was mild tenderness to palpation of the epigastrium. Pertinent laboratory findings included a high-sensitivity troponin T of 0.008 ng/mL (to convert to μg/L, multiply by 1.0), lactic acid of 3.8 mmol/L, creatinine of 1.5 mg/dL (to convert to μmol/L, multiply by 76.25), and white blood cell count of 11 900/μL (to convert to ×109/L, multiply by 0.001). A 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) was obtained (Figure).

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Article Information

Corresponding Author: Michael Brouner, MD, Tinsley Harrison Internal Medicine Residency Program, University of Alabama–Birmingham Department of Medicine, 1802 Sixth Ave S, Birmingham, AL 35233 (mrbrouner@uabmc.edu).

Published Online: January 9, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2022.5901

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.

References
1.
Kosuge  M , Ebina  T , Hibi  K ,  et al.  An early and simple predictor of severe left main and/or three-vessel disease in patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome.   Am J Cardiol. 2011;107(4):495-500. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2010.10.005PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
2.
O’Gara  PT , Kushner  FG , Ascheim  DD ,  et al.  2013 ACCF/AHA guideline for the management of ST-elevation myocardial infarction: a report of the American College of Cardiology Foundation/American Heart Association task force on practice guidelines.   J Am Coll Cardiol. 2013;61(4):e78-e140. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2012.11.019 PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
3.
Knotts  RJ , Wilson  JM , Kim  E , Huang  HD , Birnbaum  Y .  Diffuse ST depression with ST elevation in aVR: is this pattern specific for global ischemia due to left main coronary artery disease?   J Electrocardiol. 2013;46(3):240-248. doi:10.1016/j.jelectrocard.2012.12.016PubMedGoogle ScholarCrossref
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Credit Designation Statement: The American Medical Association designates this Journal-based CME activity activity for a maximum of 1.00  AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:

  • 1.00 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;;
  • 1.00 Self-Assessment points in the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery’s (ABOHNS) Continuing Certification program;
  • 1.00 MOC points in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;
  • 1.00 Lifelong Learning points in the American Board of Pathology’s (ABPath) Continuing Certification program; and
  • 1.00 CME points in the American Board of Surgery’s (ABS) Continuing Certification program

It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.

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