Background: Delayed medical attendance is a leading cause of death in patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).
Methods: We aimed to introduce, develop, and validate a novel method (RELF method) for detection of transmural ischemia based on a new and easy-to-use 3-lead configuration and orthonormalization of ST reference vectors (STDVN). The study included 60 patients undergoing coronary artery occlusion (CAO) during balloon inflation and 30 healthy subjects.
Results: STDVN was significantly different and an optimal discriminator between CAO patients and healthy subjects (respectively 8.00±4.50 vs. 1.90±0.86 normalized units, p<0.001). Compared to the 12-lead ECG, the RELF method was sensitive (90 vs. 73%, p=0.13) and more specific (91 vs. 75%, p<0.001).
Conclusions: The RELF method is highly accurate for early detection of acute occlusion related ischemia and it outperforms the conventional 12-lead ECG criteria for STEMI. This method provides a platform for self-detection of CAO with handheld devices or smart phones.
Keywords: Diagnosis; Electrocardiography; Heart arrest; Myocardial infarction.
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