What is the typical ECG finding in acute pulmonary embolism?

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Multiple Choice

What is the typical ECG finding in acute pulmonary embolism?

Sinus tachycardia is the typical ECG finding in acute pulmonary embolism because the sudden obstruction raises right heart strain and triggers a rapid, sympathetic-driven heart rate to maintain output in the face of hypoxemia and hemodynamic stress. On the ECG this appears as a fast but regular rhythm with normal P waves preceding each QRS and a rate often exceeding 100 beats per minute. You may also see signs of acute right ventricular strain, such as right axis deviation or S1Q3T3 patterns and T-wave inversions in the right precordial leads, but these are less consistently present. Atrial fibrillation or flutter and left axis deviation can occur in other contexts, but they are not the most typical finding in acute PE.

Sinus tachycardia is the typical ECG finding in acute pulmonary embolism because the sudden obstruction raises right heart strain and triggers a rapid, sympathetic-driven heart rate to maintain output in the face of hypoxemia and hemodynamic stress. On the ECG this appears as a fast but regular rhythm with normal P waves preceding each QRS and a rate often exceeding 100 beats per minute. You may also see signs of acute right ventricular strain, such as right axis deviation or S1Q3T3 patterns and T-wave inversions in the right precordial leads, but these are less consistently present. Atrial fibrillation or flutter and left axis deviation can occur in other contexts, but they are not the most typical finding in acute PE.

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