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A survey of the use of the electrocardiogram in psychiatry

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Tom Henderson*
Affiliation:
Dykebar Hospital, Grahamston Road, Paisley PA2 7DE
Dominic Gallagher
Affiliation:
Monklands and Bellshill Hospitals, NHS Trust, Monkscourt Avenue, Airdrie ML6 0JS
Cameron Stark
Affiliation:
Public Health Medicine, Ayrshire and Arran Health Board, Seafield House, Doonfoot Road, Ayr KA7 4DW
*
Correspondence
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Abstract

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A survey was undertaken to ascertain if doctors working in psychiatry knew when to perform electrocardiograms (ECGs) prior to and during psychiatric treatments where indicated, and to investigate the training, confidence and ability of doctors in ECG interpretation. Half had received no training in the indications for performing an ECG. Opinion differed widely as to when to perform an ECG, with 54% stating an ECG was required before treatment with pimozide and only 19% and 11% stating ECGs were required during the course of treatment with pimozide and high dose antipsychotic medication respectively.

Ability in ECG interpretation correlated negatively with time spent in psychiatry but no correlation existed between grade and ability to identify an ECG as normal or abnormal.

Type
Original Papers
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © 1997 The Royal College of Psychiatrists

References

Association of British Pharmaceutical Industries (1996) ABPI Data Sheet Compendium (1995–96). London: Datapharm Publications limited.Google Scholar
Royal College of Psychiatrists (1993) Consensus Statement on the use of High Dose Antipsychotic Medication. Council Report, CR26. London: RCPsych.Google Scholar
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