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ECG library

Hypercalcemia: the short QT

advanced

Confusion, constipation, and a calcium of 3.4 in a patient with myeloma.

25 mm/s · 10 mm/mV · synthetic tracing
100%
IIIIIIaVRaVLaVFV1V2V3V4V5V6
II (rhythm)
Calipers:2000 ms50.0 small boxes30 bpm if R-RDrag the orange markers. One small box = 40 ms.

Key findings

  • Short QT with an abbreviated ST segment
  • A clinical picture of stones, bones, groans, and moans

Learning points

  • Calcium sets ST-segment length: high calcium shortens it, low calcium stretches it.
  • The ECG change matters less than the cause: malignancy and hyperparathyroidism head the list.

Connected