engleski

Electrocardiographic changes in ex-prisoners of war released from detention camps

The aim of the study was to determine whether and to what extent changes in the electrocardiograms occured in released prisoners of war (POWs) from Serbian detention camps and whether the frequency of occurrence differed from similar changes in a control group. An electrocardiogram was recorded and medical examinations conducted on 182 randomly selected ex-POWs. The subjects were male with a mean age 35.8ą11.0 years, age range 18-65 years and the average length of imprisonment 164.5 ą 87.1 days. The electrocardiograms were analysed according to the Minnesota code. The following changes were frequently found: postinfarction Q-wave in 3.3%, control 1.1% (not significant), ST-segment depression horizontal of descendent in 14.3%, control 3.8% (P<0.01), particularly S-T segment depression of up to 0.5 mm in 12.1%, control 2.2% (P<0.01), total negative T-wave in 7.1% (control group 3.3%, not significant), total arrhythmia 18.1% (control 7.1%, P<0.01), particularly ventricular premature beats in 2.2% (control 0.5%, not significant), incomplete left bundle-branch block 2.2% (not registered in the control group), complete left bundle-branch block in 0.5% (not registered in the control group), sinus tachycardia in 12.1% (controls 6.6%, not significant), sinus bradycardia 3.3% (not registered in the control group), microvoltage QRS complex in 11.5% (controls 0.5%, P<0.001). The results of this study confirm that changes in the electrocardiograms of the POWs released from Serbian detention camps were far more frequent than in the controls.

Prisoners of war; Detention camps; Electrocardiogram

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