Ventricular flutter (synonyms: PVT; pulseless ventricular tachycardia (PVT); ventricular flutter; ICD-10-GM I49.0: ventricular flutter and ventricular fibrillation) is a cardiac arrhythmia in which there is a tachycardic arrhythmia of the heart with a heart rate > 250/minute. This leads to a decrease in the ejection volume of the heart.
In ventricular flutter, there is a stimulation disorder that belongs to the group of ventricular arrhythmias (cardiac arrhythmias that originate in the heart chambers (ventricles)).
Furthermore, ventricular arrhythmias include ventricular tachycardia (VT) and ventricular fibrillation.
Ventricular flutter often occurs in patients with organic heart disease.
Ventricular flutter is a medical emergency.
Course and prognosis: Ventricular flutter often transitions to ventricular fibrillation. The transition is smooth. In ventricular flutter, resuscitative measures must be initiated immediately.
The lethality (mortality based on the total number of people with the disease) of untreated ventricular flutter is 100% (without defibrillation).
