[Late ventricular potentials, ventricular arrhythmias and sudden death in patients with acquired heart defects].

Late ventricular potentials (LVP) were registered in patients with acquired valvular disease and compared to the data obtained at 24-h ECG monitoring, echocardiography and prospective 1.5-2-year follow-up. LVP were found in 14.8% of the examinees, being most frequent in patients with predominant failure of mitral or aortic valve, less frequent in those with aortic ostial stenosis and absent in patients with mitral stenosis. In LVP patients cardiomegaly, lowered myocardial contractility, high-grade ventricular extrasystole occurred more frequently. LVP measurement appeared a sensitive and specific prognostic method in respect to sudden death.