Head Up Tilt Table Test. Short versus Long Protocol

ABSTRACT Background: Vasovagal syncope is the most common cause of cardiac related syncope. Meticulous history taking and stepladder multi- investigatory tools are necessary to detect the underlying causes. However, in view of cardiologist’s busy day, a short protocol of Head up tilt table test could save effort and money. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of short timed protocol of Head Up Tilt (HUT) table test versus the traditional long protocol in assessment of neuro-cardiogenic syncope. Methods: The current study was conducted among 138 patients with history of syncope or pre-syncope, referred for HUT test during the study period from February 2019 to January 2020. A complete general and local examination and 12 leads baseline ECG was carried out. Patients were randomly divided into two groups- Conventional HUT test with 15 minutes long protocol group with 75 patients and modified short HUT test (10 minutes’ protocol) group with 63 patients. Results: No significant differences were observed in the test outcomes between both groups. However, a significant difference was observed in the mean patient recovery time in short protocol (2.64±1.35 minutes) as compared to the long protocol (4.05±1.19l minutes) (P <0.001). Conclusion: Applying the short timed protocol in tilt table testing is considered as effective as doing the traditional long protocol and would not affect the test results. The short protocol improved the patient wellbeing and helped in saving time and effort.