LAUSR

ECGs for long-QT syndrome (LQTS) with borderline long-QT intervals can be troublesome because of the absence of a gold standard diagnostic criterion. The approach to diagnose children with borderline long-QT intervals is undefined, and there is no clarity on whether they should be followed up. There is concern that timely diagnosis and treatment may not be achieved for children with true LQTS who are at risk of sudden death. In the international LQTS registry study, the 5-year cumulative probability of aborted cardiac arrest or sudden cardiac death in children and adolescents with a QTc of <500 ms with and without a history of syncope was reported to be 11% and 1%, respectively.1 See Article by Vink et al In Japan, there is a nationwide school-based ECG screening program for heart diseases for all first, seventh, and 10th graders (ages 6–7, 12–13, and 15–16 years, respectively).2,3 In this program, the detection range for a long-QT interval is a QTc of ≥450 ms at a heart rate of <75 beats per minute and ≥500 ms at a heart rate of ≥75 beats per minute. Moreover, age- and …