Photo Credit: Rasi Bhadramani
Longer RS time was associated with poor prognosis in a study that investigated electrocardiographic (ECG) and other parameters in patients with PAH. The study authors wrote in the Brazilian Archives of Cardiology that RS time is a powerful parameter that can be used in risk stratification among patients with PAH. The retrospective study included 143 patients diagnosed with PAH between 2010 and 2022, among whom 35 died. Parameters independently associated with survival were the 6-minute walk test, mean pulmonary artery pressure, presence of pericardial effusion, and time between the beginning of the QRS and the peak of the S wave, or RS time. Of them all, RS time had the best diagnostic performance, with an area under the curve of 0.832. At a cut-off value of 59.5 ms, RS time significantly corresponded with survival, the analysis found. The researchers concluded that RS time is a simple, non-invasive parameter that can offer clinicians valuable insight into the disease course.
