Arrhythmia
Disturbances to the rhythm of heart contractions. Examples of arrhythmias are atrial or ventricular extrasystoles, asystole or ventricular or atrial fibrillation. Arrhythmias may be caused by cardiotoxic effects of the contrast medium, often related to disturbances to the myocardial repolarisation. Single ventricular extrasystoles may be caused by catheter movements in the left ventricle, most commonly during high pressure injection but also during manual catheter manipulation. Patients might be predisposed for arrhythmias as a part of myocardial ischaemia. Non-ionic contrast media have a low risk of causing arrhythmias.
GE Healthcare Glossary