Prediction of Mortality Using Measures of Cardiac Autonomic Dysfunction in the Diabetic and Nondiabetic Population: The MONICA/KORA Augsburg Cohort Study
Response to Ziegler et al.
- Vaibhav Salvi, MBBS, PGDCR,
- Pooja Hingorani, BHMS, PGDCR,
- Arumugam Ramasamy, MSC and
- Snehal Kothari, MD, FACC
- From Quintiles ECG Services, Mumbai, India
- Corresponding author: Vaibhav Salvi, vaibhav.salvi{at}quintiles.com
A recent article by Ziegler et al. (1) on the value of electrocardiogram (ECG) parameters (corrected QT [QTc] interval and heart rate variability) in identifying diabetic subjects at increased risk of mortality showed that QT interval corrected for heart rate using Bazett's formula (QTcB) >440 ms was associated with higher mortality. While these results are clinically very relevant, the title of the paper suggests that QTc prolongation is caused by cardiac autonomic neuropathy. In fact, other factors may also prolong QTc interval in diabetic subjects (2,3).
We analyzed baseline ECGs of 189 diabetic subjects …
