P-wave dispersion: What we know till now?

Abstract

P-wave dispersion is defined as the difference between the maximum and the minimum P-wave duration recorded from multiple different-surface ECG leads. It has been known that increased P-wave duration and P-wave dispersion reflect prolongation of intraatrial and interatrial conduction time and the inhomogeneous propagation of sinus impulses, which are well-known electrophysiologic characteristics in patients with atrial arrhythmias and especially paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. Extensive clinical evaluation of P-wave dispersion has been performed in the assessment of the risk for atrial fibrillation in patients without apparent heart disease, in hypertensives, in patients with coronary artery disease, in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery, in patients with congenital heart diseases, as well as in other groups of patients suffering from various cardiac or non-cardiac diseases. In this paper, we aimed to summarize the measurement methods, current use in different clinical situations, strengths and limitations of the of P-wave dispersion.