Prognostic significance of complete atrioventricular block in patients with acute inferior myocardial infarction with and without right ventricular involvement.

Data were obtained and analyzed in 243 patients with acute inferior myocardial infarction who were admitted to the coronary care unit during the years 1987 and 1988. One hundred and ninety-eight patients had no signs of right ventricular involvement (group I), whereas 45 patients had inferior myocardial infarction with right ventricular infarction (group II). Patients were divided into groups depending on the presence or absence of complete atrioventricular block during hospital stay (groups Ia and IIa without block and groups Ib and IIb with block). Selected clinical and laboratory variables were compared for each group. We found that patients with inferior myocardial infarction and complete atrioventricular block had significantly higher mortality rates only in the presence of right ventricular infarction: 41% mortality rate in group IIb versus 11% mortality rate in group Ib (p less than 0.05). Patients with right ventricular infarction but without complete atrioventricular block (group IIa) had a mortality rate similar to that found in patients with inferior myocardial infarction and no atrioventricular block (group Ia): 14% versus 11% (p = NS). In patients with inferior myocardial infarction without right ventricular involvement (group I), complete atrioventricular block did not influence survival: 14% mortality rate in group Ib versus 11% mortality rate in group Ia (p = NS). The excessively high mortality rate in patients who have inferior myocardial infarction with right ventricular involvement and complete atrioventricular block could be the consequence of greater infarct size, but the synergistic influence of right ventricular infarction and complete atrioventricular block could be the other factor that influences outcome.