The Use of Epicardial Electrogram as a Simple Guide to Select the Optimal Site of Left Ventricular Pacing in Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has been demonstrated to improve symptoms and survival in patients with left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction and dyssynchrony. To achieve this goal, the LV lead should be positioned in a region of delayed contraction. We hypothesized that pacing at the site of late electrical activation was also associated with long-termresponse to CRT. We conducted a retrospective study on 72 CRT patients. For each patient, we determined the electrical delay (ED) from the onset of QRS to the epicardial EGM and the ratio of ED to QRS duration (ED/QRS duration). After a followup of 30 +/- 20 months, 47 patients responded to CRT. Responders had a significantly longer ED and greater ratio of ED/QRS duration than nonresponders. An ED/QRS duration >0.38 predicted a response to CRT with 89% specificity and 53% sensitivity.