Konecny T, et al. - This study explored if decreased left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) can explain the increased rate of ventricular tachycardias (VT) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Findings reported a higher risk of VT and mortality in COPD patients, which may not be completely ascribed to the confounding impact of systolic heart failure measured by LVEF.

Methods

• Researchers carried out this retrospective study including consecutive adult patients who underwent pulmonary function testing (PFT), Holter monitoring, and trans-thoracic echocardiography.
• In a multivariate analysis, COPD was correlated with the frequency of VT, adjusting for known confounders including LVEF.
• They also assessed long term all-cause mortality of patients with COPD and VT.

Results

• A total of 6351 patients were included in this study (age 66±15 years, 48% woman, 92% Caucasian, LVEF 59±12%); of those, 2800 (44%) had PFT indicative of COPD.
• Findings demonstrated that VT was nearly twice as likely to occur during the Holter monitoring in COPD patients (13%vs.23%;p<0.001), and the severity of COPD correlated with the risk of VT (21%vs.28%vs.37% for mild-moderate, severe, and very severe COPD;p<0.001).
• Researchers observed that even after adjusting for LVEF, demographics, and co-morbidities (age, sex, body mass index, hypertension, chronic kidney disease, coronary artery disease, cancer history, diabetes mellitus), COPD and VT remained independently associated (p<0.001).
• Data also reported an association of COPD with all-cause mortality, independent of LVEF (p<0.001).