Key result
Brugada syndrome in 24 Tunisian patients presented with a clinical profile of 79.1% asymptomatic, 16.3% with syncope, and 4.2% surviving sudden cardiac death over a mean 26-month follow-up.
Observational (n=24)
Brugada syndrome in the Tunisian population shares a similar clinical and electrophysiological profile with Western and Asian populations, with low event rates in asymptomatic, noninducible patients.
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Low event rates in asymptomatic Tunisian patients may inform risk stratification; extends Brugada phenotype data to North African cohorts.
BACKGROUND: Most clinical studies of the clinical profile of Brugada syndrome (BS) have been conducted in either Asia, Europe, or America and their applicability to North African populations is largely unknown. The aim of the study was to analyze the clinical profile of BS in Tunisian patients. METHODS: The clinical and follow-up data of 24 patients (22 men, mean age: 40.8 ± 13.7 years) were collected since 2002. Baseline characteristics, morbidity, and mortality data were obtained from medical records. RESULTS: One patient (4.16%) survived sudden cardiac death (SCD), four patients (16.3%) had syncope, and 19 patients (79.1%) were asymptomatic. Eleven patients (45.8%) had a family history of SCD. Twenty patients showed a spontaneous coved-type ST-segment elevation on electrocardiogram and after medical challenge on the four remnants. An electrophysiological study was performed in 15 of 24 patients (62.5%), during which ventricular fibrillation was induced in six patients (40%); three of the six patients were previously asymptomatic. An implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) was implanted in 14 patients (58.3%). After a mean follow-up of 26 ± 21 months, one patient died from a noncardiac cause and one patient (with a history of aborted SCD) received an appropriate shock from his ICD. None of the asymptomatic and noninducible patients experienced a cardiac event. CONCLUSIONS: BS is present in the North African population and is probably under-recognized. Tunisian patients with BS share with their western and Asiatic counterparts similar clinical profile.
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Ouali et al. (2010) conducted an observational in Brugada syndrome (n=24). Brugada syndrome was evaluated on Clinical and electrophysiological profile (SCD, syncope, asymptomatic status). Brugada syndrome in 24 Tunisian patients presented with a clinical profile of 79.1% asymptomatic, 16.3% with syncope, and 4.2% surviving sudden cardiac death over a mean 26-month follow-up.
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