General recommendations
- When the heart rate is fast and the QRS complexes are wide, don’t fall into the trap of trying to define the QRS morphology before determining what the rhythm is
- Establish the fact that you are dealing with a wide-complex tachycardia (WCT) and review its differential diagnosis
- Conscious and relatively stable patient with WCT --> diagnose, then treat
- Unconscious, unstable or pulsless patient with WCT --> immediate treatment
- SHOCK!
- IV calcium
- IV bicarbonate
- SHOCK!
