Table 1.
Patients’ baseline characteristics (n = 131)
| Characteristic | n = 131 |
|---|---|
| Age, yearsa | 68 (57–76) |
| Male sex, n (%)b | 109 (83.2) |
| LVEF, %c | 25.0 ± 12.3 |
| Causative diagnosis of electrical storm, n (%)b | |
| ST-elevation myocardial infarction | 23 (17.6) |
| Non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction | 14 (10.7) |
| Chronic coronary artery disease | 37 (28.2) |
| Dilated cardiomyopathy | 29 (22.1) |
| Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy | 4 (3.1) |
| Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy | 2 (1.5) |
| Myocarditis | 4 (3.1) |
| Valvular heart disease | 2 (1.5) |
| Long QT syndrome | 1 (0.8) |
| Hypokalaemia | 2 (1.5) |
| Acute pulmonary oedema | 1 (0.8) |
| Heart failure in LVAD bearer | 1 (0.8) |
| Idiopathic short-coupled Torsades de Pointes | 1 (0.8) |
| Idiopathic ventricular fibrillation | 1 (0.8) |
| Methadone overdose | 1 (0.8) |
| Takotsubo syndrome with long QT interval | 1 (0.8) |
| Sepsis | 3 (2.3) |
| Sepsis in COVID-19 infection | 1 (0.8) |
| Septic shock | 1 (0.8) |
| Pneumonia | 1 (0.8) |
| Post-chemotherapic cytokine release syndrome | 1 (0.8) |
| Refractory cardiac arrest, n (%)b | 11 (8.4) |
| Cardiogenic shock, n (%)b | 27 (20.6) |
| Septic shock, n (%)b | 7 (5.3) |
| Diabetes, n (%)b | 41 (31.3) |
| Oral drug at admission, n (%)b | |
| Beta-blockers | 82 (62.6) |
| Amiodarone | 46 (35) |
| Sotalol | 6 (5) |
| Mexiletine | 21 (16) |
| In-hospital death, n (%)b | 36 (27.5) |
| Electrical storm | 6 (4.6) |
| Cardiogenic shock | 16 (12.2) |
| Septic shock | 8 (6.1) |
| Sepsis | 2 (1.5) |
| Acute respiratory failure | 1 (0.8) |
| Pulmonary embolism | 1 (0.8) |
| Pneumonia | 1 (0.8) |
| Multiorgan failure after LVAD placement | 1 (0.8) |
| VT ablation after PSGB, n (%)b | 34 (26) |
| Cardiac sympathetic denervation after PSGB, n (%)b | 12 (9.2) |
| ATPs/shocks in the 12 h before the first PSGBa | 6 (3–15.8) |
| ATPs/shocks in the 12 h after the last PSGBa | 0 (0–1) |
LVAD, left ventricular assist device; LVEF, left ventricular ejection fraction; VT, ventricular tachycardia; ATP, antitachycardia pacing; PSGB, percutaneous stellate ganglion block.
aMedian (IQR).
bNumber (proportion).
cMean ± standard deviation.