Cardiac Arrhythmias 1997, 1998

The book comprises the proceedings of the 5th International Workshop on Cardiac arrhythmias, held in Venice, October 7-10,1997 and represents an update on the most recent advances in the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of cardiac arrhythmias.

Atrial Fibrillation: Mechanisms and Clinical Aspects.- What Are the Electrophysiological Mechanisms of Perpetuation of Atrial Fibrillation?.- Vagal Tone: How Important Is It in Triggering Atrial Fibrillation?.- Tachycardia Induced Atrial Fibrillation: What Incidence? How to Diagnose and Treat It?.- Atrial Fibrillation: Cardioversion and Drug Prophylaxis.- Restoration of Sinus Rhythm: Pharmacological or Electrical?.- Atrial Fibrillation: Which Drug to Prefer for Acute Cardioversion?.- Drug Prevention of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation, When and How?.- Antiarrhythmic Drug Administration before Electrical Cardioversion of Atrial Fibrillation: Is It Useful to Prevent Early Arrhythmia Recurrence?.- Atrial Fibrillation: Ablation Procedures.- AV-Nodal Ablation versus AV-Nodal Modification for Control of Atrial Fibrillation.- AV Junction Modification for Atrial Fibrillation: Which End Points?.- Heart Failure Patients with Atrial Fibrillation: How Important Is It to Regularize Ventricular Rhythm?.- Catheter Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation: Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?.- Atrial Fibrillation: Internal Defibrillation.- Restricted or Expanded Indications for Low-Energy Internal Cardioversion?.- Internal Atrial Defibrillation: What Are the Effects on Mechanical Function?.- Implantable Atrial Defibrillator: Which Results and Indications?.- The Implantable Atrial Defibrillator: Are All the Problems Solved.- Atrial Fibrillation: Prevention of Thromboembolism.- Atrial Fibrillation and Thromboembolic Risk: Is It Safe to Cardiovert Acutely under Heparin?.- Prevention of Thromboembolism in Atrial Fibrillation: When Antiplatelet Agents and When Anticoagulants?.- Atrial Flutter and Other Supraventricular Tachyarrhythmias.- Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia: Mechanism and Therapy.- What Is the Relationship between Atrial Fibrillation and Flutter in Man?.- Physiology of AV Junction: What Have We Learnt from Radiofrequency Ablation?.- What Is the Clinical Significance of Ventricular Repolarization Abnormalities during Supraventricular Tachyarrhythmias?.- Prolonged or Failed Attempts at RF Ablation of Accessory Pathways: What Are the Causes?.- Sudden Death Risk Stratification after Acute Myocardial Infarction.- What Is the Clinical and Prognostic Significance of Atrioventricular and Intraventricular Conduction Defects?.- What Is the Usefulness of Ventricular Premature Beats and Ventricular Late Potentials in the Thrombolytic Era?.- What Is the Predictive Value of Heart Rate Variability and Baroreflex Sensitivity?.- Clinical Usefulness of QT Prolongation, QT Dispersion and T-Wave Alternans.- Risk Stratification after Acute Myocardial Infarction: What Is the Usefulness of Programmed Ventricular Stimulation?.- Prevention of Sudden Death in Post-MI Patients.- After CAMIAT and EMIAT What is the Role for Amiodarone in the Prevention of Sudden Death.- Beta-blockers Prevent Sudden Death: so Why Is Their Use Limited after Myocardial Infarction?.- Prevention of Sudden Death in Post-MI Patients: What Is the Role of Non-Antiarrhythmic Drugs?.- How to Treat High-Risk Post Myocardial Infarction Patients Based on MADIT and Other Recent Trials.- Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator: Clinical Issues and New Indications.- Which Patients with ICD May Really Benefit from DDD Pacing, and Which Won’t?.- Can Alternative Pacing Therapy Solve the Problem of Heart Failure Death in ICD Patients?.- Have MADIT and Recent Post Myocardial Infarction Amiodarone Studies Changed the Classical Indications for ICD Implantation?.- What Have We Learned from the US Experience on the Prophylactic Use of ICDs Following MADIT?.- Risk Stratification of Post-MI Patients. What Are the Limitations of MADIT? What Does the Future Hold in Store?.- Ventricular Tachyarrhythmias: Uncommon Forms.- Idiopathic Left Ventricular Tachycardia: What Is New in Pathophysiology? When and How to Perform RF Ablation?.- Idiopathic Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Tachycardia: Which Substrate, Mechanism and Therapy?.- Long QT Syndrome: from Molecular Biology to Clinical Management.- Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy: Which Role for Apoptosis?.- How to Diagnose and Manage Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy Today.- “Brugada Syndrome”: A Structural Cardiomyopathy or a Functional Electrical Disease?.- Ventricular Tachyarrhythmias: Management.- Management of Ventricular Tachyarrhythmias: Is Correction of Ischemia Sufficient?.- Appropriate Indications for the Implantable Defibrillator.- The ICD Cannot Impact Non-Arrhythmic Mortality. Or Can It?.- How to Select Patients for ICD Implantation.- Syncope: Advances in Pathophysiology and Diagnosis.- Adenosine-Induced Paroxysmal Atrioventricular Block: a New Possible Cause of Unexplained Syncope?.- Carotid Sinus Syndrome: What Is the Clinical Relevance of the Vasodepressor Component and How to Manage It?.- Current Insight on the Pathophysiology of Vasovagal Syncope: What Have We Learned?.- What Is the Role of Neurohumoral Agents in the Genesis of Vasovagal Syncope?.- Vasovagal Syncope: To Tilt or Not to Tilt?.- Syncope: How Should It Be Evaluated Today?.- Vasovagal Syncope: Therapy.- Is Tilt Testing Really Useful for Selecting Vasovagal Therapy?.- Neurocardiogenic Syncope: What Role for Serotonin?.- Development of an Implantable Drug Delivery System for the Treatment of Vasovagal Syncope: a Dream or a Real Prospect?.- Sensor for Early Recognition of Imminent Vasovagal Syncope.- Is Echocardiographic Investigation Useful for Establishing the Chronological Sequence of Events in Tilt Induced Syncope?.- Cardiac Pacing: New and Controversial Indications.- Pacing from Unconventional Sites: Who, When and Why?.- Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy: Is DDD Pacing Really Useful?.- Is There a Role for Left Ventricular Pacing in the Treatment of Congestive Heart Failure?.- Mobitz Type I and First Degree AV Block: When to Permanently Pace?.- Cardiac Pacing: Different Modes of Stimulation.- Chronotropic Incompetence: How to Diagnose and Treat It?.- New Sensors for Pacing and Diagnostic Application: What Is Their Clinical Uselfulness?.- Single Lead DDD Stimulation: Is It a Real Progress?.- What Is the Real Usefulness of the AutoCapture Function?.- Cardiac Pacing: Other Issues.- Pacemaker and ICD Infections: How to Manage Them?.- Cellular Phones and Pacemakers: How Do They Interact?.- Progress in Non-Pharmacological Treatment of Cardiac Arrhythmias.- Which Patients with Dilated Cardiomyopathy May Really Benefit from Dual-chamber Pacing?.- Atrial Flutter Ablation: Long-Term Results with Standard Approach after Eight Years of Experience.- Is the Evaluation of Heart Rate Variability Before ICD Discharge Useful to Understand the Mechanisms of Sudden Cardiac Death?.- Is QRS Duration a Reliable Parameter in Discriminating between Supraventricular and Ventricular Arrhythmias?.- Which Patients Are Good Candidates for Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation Today?.