Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation with asystole and syncope: report of a case of sinus node dysfunction with hypokalemia and hypertension.

A patient is presented who developed syncope due to asystole following paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. Suppression of intrinsic cardiac pacemakers during tachycardia is postulated as the mechanism for asystole. This patient might have sinus node dysfunction. The episodes of tachycardia occurred more often when the serum potassium level was low.