eMedicine Specialties > Emergency Medicine > Cardiovascular
Ventricular Fibrillation: Differential Diagnoses & Workup
Updated: Jul 28, 2008
- Overview
- Differential Diagnoses & Workup
- Treatment & Medication
- Follow-up
- Multimedia
Differential Diagnoses
| Hyperkalemia | Toxicity, Digitalis |
| Hypokalemia | Ventricular Tachycardia |
| Torsade de Pointes | |
| Toxicity, Antidepressant | |
| Toxicity, Cocaine |
Other Problems to Be Considered
Ventricular flutter
Wide complex tachycardia
Supraventricular tachycardia
Pulseless electrical activity (PEA)
Digitalis toxicity
Electrolyte disturbances
Acute pulmonary disorders
Acute toxidromes (eg, cocaine toxicity)
Workup
Laboratory Studies
- Serum electrolyte levels, including calcium and magnesium
- Cardiac enzymes to identify myocardial injury
- Complete blood count (CBC) to detect contributing anemia
- Arterial blood gases (ABGs) to assess degree of acidosis or hypoxemia
- Toxicologic screens and levels as clinically indicated
Imaging Studies
- Chest radiography may identify aspiration pneumonia, pulmonary edema, cardiomegaly, and injury (eg, secondary to cardiopulmonary resuscitation [CPR]).
Other Tests
- Electrocardiography (ECG) to help identify ischemic or proarrhythmic conditions
More on Ventricular Fibrillation |
| Overview: Ventricular Fibrillation |
Differential Diagnoses & Workup: Ventricular Fibrillation |
| Treatment & Medication: Ventricular Fibrillation |
| Follow-up: Ventricular Fibrillation |
| Multimedia: Ventricular Fibrillation |
| References |
| « Previous Page | Next Page » |
References
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Further Reading
Keywords
VF, ventricular fibrillation, sudden cardiac death, SCD, tachycardia, ventricular tachycardia, VT, pulseless electrical activity, PEA, asystole, acute cardiac ischemia, acute cardiac infarction, acute myocardial infarction, MI, cardiac arrest
Differential Diagnoses & Workup: Ventricular Fibrillation