Prognostic impact of morphology and duration of premature ventricular contractions in a population without structural heart disease

BACKGROUND: Premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) are a common form of arrhythmia associated with an unfavorable prognosis in patients with structural heart disease. It is unclear whether PVCs site of origin and QRS-width has a prognostic significance in patients without structural heart disease. The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic importance of PVCs morphology and duration in this patient group. METHODS: We included 511 consecutive patients without a history of previous heart disease. They were examined with echocardiography and exercise test with normal findings. We categorized the PVCs from a 12 lead ECG according to morphology and width of the QRS-complex and analyzed the outcome in terms of a composite endpoint of total mortality and cardiovascular morbidity. RESULTS: During a median follow-up time of 5.3 years, 19 patients (3.5%) died and 61 (11.3%) met the composite outcome. Patients with PVCs originating from the outflow tracts had a significantly lower risk for the composite outcome compared to patients with non-OT-PVCs. Similarly, patients with PVC originating from the right ventricle had a better outcome than patients with left ventricular PCVs. No difference in outcome depending on QRS-width during PVCs was noticed. CONCLUSION: In our cohort of consecutively included PVC patients without structural heart disease PVCs from the outflow tracts were associated with a better prognostic outcome than non-OT PVCs; the same was true for right ventricular PVCs when compared to left ventricular ones. The classification of the origin of the PVCs was based on 12-lead ECG morphology. QRS-width during PVC did not seem to have prognostic significance.