Are Electrocardiographic Changes in Patients with Acute Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Associated with Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy?

The diagnosis of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TC), or stress-induced cardiomyopathy, has become increasingly common due to a heightened awareness of the condition. However, the pathogenesis remains uncertain. Emotional stress followed by a subsequent surge in catecholamine that causes myocardial stunning is the most widely accepted mechanism for TC. Scientists have also proposed that since the ECG manifestations of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) are similar to those of TC, that the pathogenesis of both conditions may be similar. That is, patients with SAH may also demonstrate a catecholamine elevation and present clinically with regional wall motion abnormalities. In Cardiology, Jung et al. [1] evaluated the parallels between these 2 conditions.