Prevalence of Cardiac Arrhythmias in Thai Young Employees

Abstract

Background: Since 1887, the electrocardiogram (ECG) has been used in the diagnosis of cardiovascular disease. It is objective, simple, rapidly obtained, painless, and largely independent of cooperation or language differences. The ECG plays an important role as a screening test for cardiac arrhythmia. The objective of this study was to describe the prevalence of cardiac arrhythmia in apparently healthy middle-class subjects in a Thai community. Methods and results: The resting 12 lead electrocardiogram was recorded in 1,474 apparently healthy employees of Shinawat Corporation Company. There were 844 females and 630 males whose ages were 30 years or more (mean age 34.8 years). The prevalence rate of sinus bradycardia was 108.6 per thousand, sinus tachycardia 8.8 per thousand, sinus arrhythmia 10.9 per thousand, ventricular premature beats 8.8 per thousand, atrial premature beats 2.7 per thousand, atrial fibrillation 0.7 per thousand, Wolff-Parkinson-White pattern 2 per thousand, short PR interval without delta wave 4.7 per thousand, first degree AV block 15.6 per thousand, second degree AV block type I 0.7 per thousand, left anterior fascicular block 8.8 per thousand, left posterior fascicular block 1.4 per thousand and complete right bundle branch block 2 per thousand. The prevalence rates for incomplete right bundle branch block, AV dissociation, junctional rhythm and low atrial rhythm were 0.7 per thousand. Complete left bundle branch block was not found in this study. Conclusions: This is a report of cardiac arrhythmia prevalences in Thai young employees recorded by resting 12 lead ECG. The prevalences in our study were lower than actual prevalences because we used only single 12 lead ECG to detect cardiac arrhythmia during a limited time frame.