Do pacemaker-related myocardial perfusion defects worsen during higher pacing rate and coronary flow augmentation?
RVA pacing results in myocardial perfusion defects. The false-positive findings are present at rest and more obvious with high-rate pacing than during adenosine infusion. Detection of coronary artery disease should be performed with caution in RVA paced patients because of the high number of perfusion defects observed in the absence of coronary artery disease.
Premarital haemoglobinopathy screening should not be mandatory in a non-prevalent region of a prevalent country as part of a national control programme. If screening is mandatory, it should be performed by total blood count or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, which are simple, rapid and less expensive than HPLC.