Right ventricular scar-related ventricular tachycardia in nonischemic cardiomyopathy: Electrophysiological characteristics, mapping, and ablation of underlying heart disease.

BACKGROUND: Right ventricular (RV)-scar related ventricular tachycardia (VT) is often due to arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy/dysplasia (ARVC/D) or cardiac sarcoidosis (CS), but some patients whose clinical course has not been described do not fulfill diagnostic criteria for these diseases. We sought to characterize the electrophysiologic substrate and catheter ablation outcomes of such patients, termed RV cardiomyopathy of unknown source (RCUS).

METHODS AND RESULTS: Data of 100 consecutive patients who presented with RV cardiomyopathy and/or RV-related VT for ablation were reviewed (51 ARVC/D, 22 CS; 27 RCUS). Compared to ARVC/D, RCUS patients were older (P = 0.001), less commonly had RV dilatation (P = 0.001) or dysfunction (P = 0.01) and fragmented QRS, parietal block, and T-wave inversion. Compared to CS, R-CUS patients had less severe LV dysfunction. Extent and distribution of endocardial/epicardial scar and inducible VTs in RCUS patients were comparable with ARVC/D and CS patients. At a median follow-up of 23 months, RCUS patients had more favorable VT-free survival (RCUS 71%, ARVC/D 60%, CS 41%, P = 0.03) and survival free of death or cardiac transplant (RCUS 92%, ARVC/D 92%, CS 62%, P = 0.01). No RCUS patients developed new criteria for ARVC/D or CS in follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS: Up to one-third of patients with RV scar-related VT are not classifiable as ARVC/D or CS. These patients had a somewhat better prognosis than ARVC/D or sarcoid and did not develop evidence of these diseases during the initial 2 years of follow-up. The extent to which this population comprises mild ARVC/D, CS, or other diseases is not clear.