CORRELATION BETWEEN THE PERSISTENCE OF ST ELEVATION AND LEFT-VENTRICULAR ANEURYSM POSTINFARCTION

The objective of this study was to verify whether the persistence of S T elevation on ECG after myocardial infarction was well correlated wit h the presence of left ventricular aneurysm. This study concerns 30 ma le patients with a mean age of 46 +/- 7.6 years, with ST elevation of more than 1 mm on EGG, at least 15 days after the presumed onset of my ocardial infarction. All patients were investigated by echocardiograph y and cardiac catheterization. ST elevation was recorded in the ECG le ads corresponding to the site of necrosis. 2D echocardiography identif ied 21 cases (70%) of left ventricular aneurysm and cardiac catheteriz ation revealed 26 cases (86%). The electrical site of ST elevation was correlated with the site of the aneurysm. In conclusion, the persiste nce of ST elevation on the ECG more than 15 days after the onset of my ocardial infarction has a good predictive value for the presence of le ft ventricular aneurysm, which can only be confirmed by cardiac cathet erization.