Surface ECG f Wave Analysis of Dofetilide Drug Effect in the Atrium

Dofetilide Effect on f Waves in AF Introduction The electrocardiogram (ECG) fibrillatory (f) wave characteristics in atrial fibrillation (AF) could provide important information regarding the efficacy of antiarrhythmic drug therapy. Methods and Results To measure the effects of dofetilide on the surface ECG f wave characteristics in patients with persistent AF, baseline and post‐drug (2 hours after first dose and after multiple doses) ECGs in 31 patients with persistent AF admitted for dofetilide loading were evaluated. A QRST template subtraction algorithm was used to yield an atrial ECG. Fast Fourier transform analysis was performed to evaluate the maximum organizational index (OI), the dominant frequency (DF) in the lead with max OI, the median DF for all leads, and the vector magnitude f wave amplitude. Dofetilide reduced DF in the lead with the max OI (6.32 ± 0.98 Hz at baseline vs. 4.83 ± 0.63 Hz after final dose, P