A 60-year-old male in the hospital.
He can talk coherently and is complaining a sudden onset of lightheadedness. He is AOx3 and coherent.
HR = 175 beats/min and his blood pressure is 120/62 mm Hg.
Rhythm strip shows a widened, regular, monomorphic QRS.
What is the initial treatment?
Adenosine.
We know adenosine is the right choice if it was a regular, narrow complex tachycardia. However, Adenosine can also be used for a stable, regular, monomorphic wide-complex tachycardia. It will help to both diagnose and potentially treat.
If adenosine doesn’t work, an antiarrhythmic medication would be recommended for this patient.