THE CLINICAL COURSE OF PRESYNCOPE IN THE DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS OF SYNCOPE

Abstract

Aim. To evaluate the clinical signs and symptoms in the differential diagnosis of syncope.Material and methods. We investigated 160 patients (64 men and 96 women), aged 18-77 years with reflex or cardiac syncope over the last 3 years. The following were investigated: age, sex, age at first syncope, number of presyncopal episodes, number of syncopal episodes, number of sudden syncope without prodromal signs and the circumstances of syncope. Moreover, we assessed the frequencies of prodromal signs in the differential diagnosis of syncope.Results. Patients with reflex syncope were younger compared to patients with cardiac syncope (41,3±16,5 vs. 61,8±12,8; P<0,001) and had lower weight and body mass index (BMI). Reflex syncope patients more often presented with presyncope (10 (2, 20) vs. 2 (1, 3); p=0,01)) and syncope (8,1±7,8 vs. 5,4±1,6; P<0,001). Dyspnea, heart palpitations, feeling of cold or heat, visual disturbances and tinnitus were associated with reflex syncope (P<0,01).Conclusion. The course of syncope may facilitate a diagnostic process of reflex and cardiac syncope.

Keywords

• key words: cardiac syncope
• prodromal symptoms
• reflex syncope
• syncope.