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Course # 9036 • Clinical Management of Ventricular Arrhythmias

Overview:

Audience:

Accreditations/Approvals:

Designations of Credit:

Individual State Nursing Accreditations:

Special Approvals:

Course Objective:

Learning Objectives:

1. Define basic concepts of normal cardiac conduction, including cellular events, and normal electrocardiogram (ECG) waveform.
2. Identify premature ventricular complexes (PVCs), including electrophysiological characteristics, patterns of occurrence, related symptoms and common precipitating causes.
3. Describe monomorphic ventricular tachycardia, including electrophysiological characteristics, impact on physiological functioning, and underlying pathophysiology.
4. Identify polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, including electrophysiological characteristics, impact on physiological functioning, and underlying pathophysiology.
5. Describe ventricular fibrillation, including electrophysiological characteristics, impact on physiological functioning, and underlying pathophysiology.
6. List key points in the American Heart Association's "Chain of Survival," including the use of automated external defibrillators (AED).
7. List key points in the emergency management of life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias for patients, as recommended by ACLS guidelines.
8. Outline the assessment, diagnosis, and risk stratification process for patients who have, or are deemed to be at risk for, ventricular arrhythmias.
9. Describe the management of PVCs and nonsustained VT in persons with and without heart disease.
10. State major indications for implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) and outline the basic components, functions, therapy options, and implantation procedure for current generation ICDs.
11. Discuss basic discharge education, home safety measures, psychosocial considerations, and medical follow-up for a person post ICD-implantation.
12. Discuss problems that may occur with ICD functioning, including ICD storm, delivery of inappropriate shocks, and failure to deliver therapy.
13. Describe the use of antiarrhythmic medications in the long-term management of ventricular arrhythmias.
14. Describe additional therapies that may be used in the management of ventricular arrhythmias, including the optimization of medical therapy for underlying heart disease and the use of ventricular reconstruction surgery.
15. Discuss current trends and issues in the management of persons who have, or are at risk for, ventricular arrhythmias.
16. Using simulated clinical data, discuss the clinical management of a person with ischemic cardiomyopathy and nonsustained ventricular tachycardia, and the clinical management of a person who experiences multiple ICD shocks.

Faculty:

Karen Majorowicz, RN, ARNP, is currently employed in the Cardiac Intermediate Care Unit at Shands Healthcare, UF-Gainesville, Florida. She received her masters in Medical-Surgical Nursing in 1978 from the University of Maryland. Karen has created numerous instructional manuals on Medicare and conducted educational programs on cardiovascular assessment and was curriculum and instructional design consultant to the Institute for Child Health Policy, University of Florida for a self-paced instructional module of SSI Disability for children.

Division Planner(s):

John V. Jurica, MD, MPH

Jane C. Norman, RN, MSN, CNE, PhD

Faculty Disclosure

Contributing faculty, Karen Majorowicz, RN, ARNP, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.

Division Planner Disclosure

The division planners have disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.

About the Sponsor

The purpose of CME Resource is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.

Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.

Disclosure Statement

It is the policy of CME Resource not to accept commercial support.

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