Electrocardiographic Findings in 98 Consecutive Non-penetrating Chest Injuries

¹ Assistant, Electrocardiographic Service, Arcispedale of S. M. Nuova
² Assistant Head of Anesthesiology, Arcispedale of S. M. Nuova
³ Assistant of Surgery, Arcispedale of S. M. Nuova

Ninety consecutive patients with nonpenetrating chest injuries were observed for evidence of cardiac trauma. Eleven were arbitrarily considered to have sustained severe trauma, 18 light trauma and 69 moderately severe. No signs or symptoms of traumatic cardiac involvement were found on clinical and radiologic examinations. Electrocardiography revealed abnormalities related to trauma in 19 cases (19 per cent). In 15 cases changes were limited to flattening of inversion of T wave in leads III, a VF and V1 or in flattening of T waves in one or two chest leads. In five cases, which are reported in detail, there were diffuse light depression of the ST segment and shallow inversion of the T waves. Such changes have not been attributed to myocardial injury, since several extracardiac factors, such as tachycardia, emotion, pulmonary circulation derangements, pulmonary dysfunction, appeared to be more convincing factors in their production.