A 78-year-old lady with long-standing hypertension on amlodipine was brought into hospital after seemingly 'passing-out' at home earlier in the day. This happened suddenly and without warning. She endorsed palpitations a few minutes prior to fainting. These palpitations have apparently been troubling her for months now and she's waiting to be seen by a cardiologist. In the ED, she's conscious and oriented x 3. BP was 110/64 mmHg, She had a rapid pulse rate of 178/min. She's diaphoretic but her cardiovascular examination was otherwise unremarkable. A 12-lead ECG was obtained and shown as below

Her laboratory investigations (sent from triage) were all within normal limits. c-Tn-T was 13 ng/L, serum K+ was 4.3 mmol/L.
Part (1) of this case
[1] what does the ECG show? what is the diagnosis/differential diagnosis?
[2] how would you manage the patient at this stage?
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MMOexp-Diablo 4 Season 9 Meta Predictions
With Diablo 4 Season 9 officially here, the question on every player's mind is simple: Which class should I play? Whether you're diving into high-level Pit content Diablo 4 Items, bossing, or just speed-farming your way through the overworld, knowing which class has the tools to thrive in the new patch is critical.
Ranks all five Diablo 4 classes by how well-rounded they are across four major criteria:
1.Speed Farming
2.Pit Pushing (Endgame)
3.Bossing
4.Leveling Experience (1-60)
Unlike lists that focus on the best single build, this one is about class versatility-how many viable builds each class has to tackle all types of content. Here's how the meta shapes up for Season 9.
F-Tier: Barbarian-The Fall from Grace
The Barbarian has taken the biggest hit this season. Once a top-tier powerhouse thanks to Overpower builds in Season 8, it now finds itself at the very bottom of the ladder. Overpower mechanics were severely nerfed, and with most of Barb's strongest builds reliant on them, the class has been left struggling.
Best options: Bash and Lunging Strike
Leveling recommendation: Whirlwind remains serviceable for early progression.
Why it's low: It fails to stand out in any of the four key categories. Unless the community unearths a hidden synergy or bugged mechanic, Barbarian is unfortunately dead on arrival in Season 9.
B-Tier: Druid-Solid but Still Stuck
Druid holds its ground from last season, remaining firmly in B-tier. While not exceptional, it's still very playable and boasts solid options for bossing and leveling.
Key Notes:
Speed Farming: Cataclysm got nerfed but still works well.
Bossing: Boulder, Flesh Render, and Companion builds are all promising-especially with the recent bug fix that was previously holding companions back.
Pit Pushing: Pulverize is on the rise due to a new unique item that adds poison puddles, enhancing its AoE damage.
Leveling: Pulverize is again the go-to here, making it an efficient start-to-end build.
Recommendation: Start with Pulverize, then branch into other endgame builds like Cataclysm for farming and Boulder or Companion for bossing.
B-Tier: Necromancer-Another Overpower Casualty
Just like the Barbarian, the Necromancer suffers from the Overpower nerf. However, it doesn't fall quite as far due to its inherent bossing potential and flexibility in leveling.
Standout Builds:
Endgame Bossing: Bloodwave is still viable, though weaker.
Speed Farming: Blood Surge can get the job done, particularly in T4 overworld content.
Leveling: Blood Surge remains one of the smoothest 1-60 options in the game.
Emerging Option: Shadow Blight might turn heads this season as a DOT-based build that could surprise people in the first few weeks.
Tip: Level with Blood Surge, farm up Bloodwave gear, and transition for boss content and endgame Pit farming.
A-Tier: Rogue-Still Slick, but Slightly Slower
The Rogue remains in a good spot, despite direct nerfs to its best build from last season, Death Trap. While its potential for pushing the deepest Pits has been curbed, it's still extremely strong in other categories.
Build Highlights:
Speed Farming: Shadow Step is still S-tier.
Bossing: Twisting Blades and Reign of Arrows remain excellent.
Leveling: Dance of Knives is king-noticeably better than other leveling builds for the class.
All-arounder: Death Trap is slightly weaker now but still the Rogue's most flexible build.
Suggested Path: Start with Dance of Knives, pivot into Death Trap, and then branch into specialty builds for bossing or speed farming.
A-Tier: Sorcerer-From C to Star Pupil
Season 9 sees the Sorcerer leap from C-tier to A-tier, thanks to massive buffs and the introduction of game-changing uniques. If you've been waiting to play Sorc, now's the time.
Best Builds:
All-Rounder: Hydra and Chain Lightning lead the charge with excellent performance across nearly every activity.
Speed Farming Options: Blizzard, Inferno, Fireball, Ice Shards, Ball Lightning, and Lightning Spear all offer solid clears.
Leveling: Hydra is efficient and scales well into the endgame.
Pit Pushing: Still not the class's strongest suit, but Meteor and Ice Shards builds can go the distance if properly geared.
Pro Tip: Hydra got unique item support that spawns massive Hydra heads and boosts damage. Consider this as your main path through the season.S-Tier: Spiritborn-The Unstoppable Force
New to Diablo 4, the Spiritborn class was strong at launch, nerfed, and now reborn in Season 9 as the undisputed S-tier king. It has everything: elite bossing, dominant speed farming, top-tier Pit potential, and smooth leveling.
The Crown Jewels:
Quill Volley & Rake Thorns Builds: Both leverage a new unique called Balance Maxle, which boosts Thorns damage and poisons enemies through Bastion-a passive that adds Barrier and boosts damage the longer you retaliate.
Rake Build: More forgiving and user-friendly.
Quill Volley: Higher ceiling for advanced players who can manage cooldowns and positioning.
Leveling: Quill Volley and Stinger are excellent early game builds.
All Content Ready: Whether you're farming glyph XP, grinding bosses, or blasting overworld mobs, Spiritborn has a build for it.
Season Strategy: Start with Quill Volley, use it to farm up your Balance Maxle set, and then transition into Thorns builds for late-game dominance.
Final Thoughts: A Dynamic Season Ahead
While this tier list offers a comprehensive look at expected class performance for Diablo 4 Season 9, everything could shift in the coming weeks. New discoveries Diablo 4 admissions, balance hotfixes, and community ingenuity always reshape the meta.
So far, here's how the classes rank overall:
S-Tier: Spiritborn
A-Tier: Rogue, Sorcerer
B-Tier: Druid, Necromancer
F-Tier: Barbarian
Whether you want to speedrun, explore builds, or dive deep into high-end Pit content, there's plenty to enjoy this season.
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Increased performance: Bolstering your individual with Boss Powers permits you to clean content faster and extra successfully. This means faster runs thru dungeons, Helltides, and different gold-rich activities. Think about decimating hordes of enemies with a souped-up model of Varshan's poison pools or melting elites with Grigoir's lightning moves.
Optimized Builds: Season 8 needs that players optimize their builds not simplest round their class abilities and Diablo 4 objects, but also across the Boss Powers they pick out to wield. This ends in a deeper degree of person customization, permitting you to create exceedingly efficient gold-farming machines. Experimentation will be key to locating the right synergy diablo 4 gold for sale.
Targeted Farming: know-how which Boss Powers are only for specific content might be vital. Want to blast via Helltides for Cinders to free up Tortured presents of mystery? Cognizance on obtaining Boss Powers that excel at clearing dense packs of enemies. Farming Nightmare Dungeons for XP and gear? Look for powers that enhance single-target harm towards elites and bosses.
Market Dynamics (ability): even as the precise mechanics are nonetheless unfolding, there's a sturdy possibility that the demand for particular Diablo 4 items that synergize properly with famous Boss Powers will growth. Keep an eye at the in-recreation market and be geared up to capitalize on these tendencies. Clever buying and selling can drastically improve your gold reserves.
Suggestions for Maximizing Your Gold profits
Studies and experiment: Dive deep into the available Boss Powers and their consequences. Take a look at different combinations together with your construct to locate what works satisfactory for you.
Target the right Bosses: focus your efforts on farming the bosses whose powers provide the best benefit in your favored gold-farming activities.
Optimize Your build: alter your abilities, Paragon board, and Diablo 4 gadgets to compliment your selected Boss Powers.
Stay informed: keep up-to-date with the cutting-edge network discussions and courses to discover new techniques and most effective setups.
Watch the market: Be aware of shifts in call for for precise items and materials as gamers optimize their builds around Boss Powers.
Diablo 4 Season 8 gives transformative gameplay improvements through the creation of Boss Powers, essentially changing the manner gamers farm for gold. By growing efficiency, allowing deeper customization, helping centered farming u4gm, and developing dynamic market possibilities, these changes will drastically effect how players method the sport.
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Stay cautious around fainters, just as YOLOv8 stays alert in detecting objects with precision and accuracy!
The following is a general framework to approach such arrhythmias. This is also the recommended algorithmic approach by the ACC/AHA and ESC guidelines on the diagnosis and management of supraventricular tachyarrythmias.
The 12-lead ECG in our patient shows the following findings:
- An irregular (irregularly irregular) narrow complex tachycardia (the QRS duration is hardly 1-1.5 small boxes wide; that is 40-60 msec).
- The QRS axis is deviated to the right. This is likely due to LPHB in an elderly, hypertensive lady who likely has ‘early’ degenerative conduction system disease. This is obviously a diagnosis of exclusion (but there don’t appear to be any other features in the ECG to explain the RAD e.g. RVH … etc)
- Incomplete RBBB
- There are wide-spread ST segment abnormalities. One can argue that the ST depression in seen in V1-V3 are due to RBBB. However, remember we mentioned earlier that the delayed conduction down the RBB is incomplete, and therefore unlikely to result in significant ST-T wave abnormalities. There is ST elevation in aVR and V1 and ST depression in II, III, aVF and V2-V6. These findings are consistent with diffuse subendocardial ischemia. This could be due to severe coronary artery disease (e.g. severe LM disease, triple vessel disease … etc) or due to non-coronary causes of global myocardial ischemia e.g. severe hypotension, severe hypoxia … etc. In this case, the elderly, postmenopausal lady is also hypertensive and likely has underlying coronary artery disease. Alternatively, she likely has concentric LVH from long-standing hypertension and the rapid ventricular rate from the irregularly rhythm resulted in (1) loss of much needed atrial contribution to forward cardiac output (can be as significant as 30-40% of the forward SV) (2) rapid ventricular rate and shortened diastole compromises myocardial coronary blood flow, which happens mainly in diastole (LV coronary perfusion mechanics).
- It is imperative to correct the QT interval for HR variability. Various equations have been suggested but all have their inherent limitations. The Bazzett’s formula for example tends to overcorrect at faster rates and undercorrects at lower rates.
The ECG is not consistent with a pre-excited arrhythmia as no delta waves are seen (unlike what is stated in some of the responses). Pre-excited AF would look like the tracing below. The diagram also summarizes the features characterizing the life-threatening arrhythmia.
Therefore, to answer the questions in this post:
1. The ECG shows an irregular narrow complex tachycardia with incomplete right bundle branch block, right axis deviation (likely due to LPHB), and diffuse subendocardial ischemia. The differential diagnosis for the irregular narrow complex tachycardia is:
a. AF (most likely)
b. Atrial flutter with variable AV block
c. Atrial tachycardia with variable AV block
d. Multifocal atrial tachycardia which is unlikely given
i. No predisposing conditions (COPD, theophylline intake … etc)
ii. There is no P wave before every QRS complex
2. Management would include:
a. ABC – make sure the patient is under continuous ECG monitoring
b. Obtain a BP recording in both arms
c. Consider pharmacological rate control. Options would include:
i. IV metoprolol
ii. IV diltiazem or verapamil
iii. IV adenosine: the response to adenosine can sometimes break the arrhythmias and declare the exact type as shown in the diagram below. The response in AVNRT and AVRT will be discussed in subsequent ECG cases.
d. Continuous ECG monitoring while administering the medications to understand the behavior of the arrhythmia (response to pharmacological agents and pattern of termination).
e. Carefully evaluate the post conversion ECG (if conversion was successful)
f. Serial ECG(s) and c-Tn-T ( I suppose that is reasonable given the worrisome ECG findings in an elderly lady with risk factors for CAD).
Stay tuned for Part (2) of this case. It is where all the action took place !!
Very interesting ECG !
- I can see irregular narrow QRS complexes with Delta wave noted in few occasions , So WPW with Afib is top differential. But I don’t know if this the age of it !.
- some P waves with short PR and noted as well ! Might think of Flutter with variable block.
- of note , ST elevation in aVR , ? RBBB , S1Q3T3 but since Trop negative and the previous history of palpitations ; will be down in the list to consider ischemia and PE.
in this stage if no hemodynamics instability as we see, will use medications for rate control and will avoid AV node blocking medications to avoid increase conduction via the accessory pathway and resulting in VT or VF. The optimal option will be procainamide or ibutilide.
Also we need to make sure correcting any electrolytes abnormalities so we need to check Mg as well and optimize it even without waiting results.
reviewing previous ECGs and patient medications will be of great benefit.
ECG showed irregular irregular rhythm , rapid heart rate of 178, STE aVR , Delta wave in lead 11, aVF ?
Shape of ST depression, digoxin effect? Scoop ST depression
Clinically seems stable
DD :
AF with RVR ,
AF with WPW ,
Digoxin toxicity ?
less likely atrial flutter with variable conduction
Keep her on chest lead monitors , monitor BP
Review her file , medication, previous ECG , ask about herbal medication for digoxin toxicity
ACS to be ruled out , negative trop not ruled out ACS, for serial ECG and troponin
Echo to look for structural abnormality, possible of vegetation formation as she has syncope / LOC history , possible of TIA ?
Electrolyte abnormalities : normal potassium level
Digoxin level is there is strong suggestion from history or h/o digoxin
TFT
CT head after stabilizing her rate
Mx
Currently seems stable to me , no need for cardioversion and cardioversion decision will be difficult choice bcz her sx for months and possible of thromboembolism event is more
pre-excitation features in ECG >>> AV nodal block agents to be avoided
To be treated with procainamide
If digoxin toxicity for Fab therapy
also to send Ca and Mg level , not only potassium to be checked
ECG showed irregular irregular rhythm , rapid heart rate of 178, STE aVR , Delta wave in lead 11, aVF ?
Shape of ST depression, digoxin effect? Scoop ST depression
Clinically seems stable
DD :
AF with RVR ,
AF with WPW ,
Digoxin toxicity ?
less likely atrial flutter with variable conduction
Keep her on chest lead monitors , monitor BP
Review her file , medication, previous ECG , ask about herbal medication for digoxin toxicity
ACS to be ruled out , negative trop not ruled out ACS, for serial ECG and troponin
Echo to look for structural abnormality, possible of vegetation formation as she has syncope / LOC history , possible of TIA ?
Electrolyte abnormalities : normal potassium level
Digoxin level is there is strong suggestion from history or h/o digoxin
TFT
CT head after stabilizing her rate
Mx
Currently seems stable to me , no need for cardioversion and cardioversion decision will be difficult choice bcz her sx for months and possible of thromboembolism event is more
pre-excitation features in ECG >>> AV nodal block agents to be avoided
To be treated with procainamide
If digoxin toxicity for Fab therapy
1- this ECG is showing irregularly irregulr rythum. with QT is prolonged, around 470 using Bezzet formula.
diagnosis: Long QT + MAT ( there is clear p waves in lead 2 varrying in its morphology with variable PR)
differential diagnosis for her Irregularly irregulr rythum: AF
( there is slight widening in the QRS, but it dosnt fit "AF with accessory pathway": the rate is too slow )
2- managment:
1-send the Mg, Ca, k levels.
2- elaborate in the hx if she is on any meds causing prolong QT.
3- elaborate in the hx for family history of sudden death or syncopal attacks.
4-start on IV Magnisium sulfate for prolong QT.
5- for MAT : look for the undrlying causes and treat it.
ECG showed irregularly irregular rate with no clear P waves with slightly wide QRD complex
ddx :
AF withWPW ( although with this combination we expect HR to be higher than this) and the age is not typical!
MAT is another ddx although I cant see a clear P wave , maybe if we slow her HR the ECG will be more clear
flutter is less likely as HR is not the typical and I can not see any flutter waves
my top ddx is AF with reentry pathway
mangment : all AV nodal blockage should be avoided
the best and safest drug is procinamide
If she was unstable ( which is not the current status) cardiovesrion will be the option