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Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffPeople at risk of long QT syndrome include:
- Children, teenagers and young adults with unexplained fainting, unexplained near drownings or other accidents, unexplained seizures, or a history of cardiac arrest
- Family members of children, teenagers and young adults with unexplained fainting, unexplained near drownings or other accidents, unexplained seizures, or a history of cardiac arrest
- First-degree relatives of people with known long QT syndrome
- People taking medications known to cause prolonged Q-T intervals
- People with low potassium, magnesium or calcium blood levels — such as those with the eating disorder anorexia nervosa
Long QT syndrome often goes undiagnosed or is misdiagnosed as a seizure disorder, such as epilepsy. However, long QT syndrome may be responsible for some otherwise unexplained deaths in children and young adults. For example, an unexplained drowning of a young person may be the first clue to inherited long QT syndrome in a family.
References
- Ackerman MJ, et al. Congenital long QT syndrome. In: Gussak I, et al. Electrical Diseases of the Heart; Genetics, Mechanisms, Treatment, Prevention. New York, N.Y.: Springer; 2008:462.
- Long QT syndrome. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/qt/qt_whatis.html. Accessed Feb. 10, 2012.
- Long QT syndrome. Heart Rhythm Society. http://www.hrsonline.org/PatientInfo/HeartRhythmDisorders/IDisorders/index.cfm. Accessed Feb. 10, 2012.
- Madias C, et al. Acquired long QT syndrome from stress cardiomyopathy is associated with ventricular arrhythmias and torsades de pointes. Heart Rhythm. 2011;8:555.
- Mauriello DA, et al. Holter monitoring in the evaluation of congenital long QT syndrome. Pacing & Clinical Electrophysiology. 2011;34:1100.
- Berul CI, et al. Acquired long QT syndrome. http://www.uptodate.com/index. Accessed March 9, 2012.
- Barsheshet A, et al. Genotype-specific QT correction for heart rate and the risk of life-threatening cardiac events in adolescents with congenital long-QT syndrome. Heart Rhythm. 2011;8:1207.
- Seslar SP, et al. Diagnosis of congenital long QT syndrome. http://www.uptodate.com/index. Accessed March 9, 2012.
- Anand RG, et al. The role of fish oil in arrhythmia prevention. Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention. 2008;28:92.
- Farnsworth MM, et al. When I go in to wake them ... I Wonder: Parental perceptions about congenital long QT syndrome. Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. 2006;18:284.
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