Clinical profile and genetic basis of Brugada syndrome in a Chinese population

Brugada syndrome (BS) is rarely reported among Chinese. We report for the first time the clinical profile and genetic basis of BS in a Chinese population. We prospectively evaluate Chinese subjects with BS. The clinical and follow-up data of 50 BS subjects and genetic data of 36 probands were analyzed. 8 subjects survived sudden death (group A), 12 had syncope of unknown origin but no sudden death (group B) and 30 were asymptomatic (group C) before recognition of BS. 50%, 8.3% and 0% of group A, group B and group C subjects had new arrhythmic events over a mean follow-up of 26+/-11, 22+/-8 and 20+/-10 months respectively. 5 of 36 probands (14%) who underwent genetic test were found to have mutation in their SCN5A gene. We concluded that Chinese subjects with BS have both clinical profile and prevalence of SCN5A mutation similar to their western counterparts.