A Rare Case of a Panic Attack Inducing a Junctional Escape Rhythm on ECG

Adam Kurnick; Alam Ahmed; Joseph Gonzalez; Adam S Budzikowski

doi:10.7759/cureus.40677

A Rare Case of a Panic Attack Inducing a Junctional Escape Rhythm on ECG

Cureus. 2023 Jun 20;15(6):e40677. doi: 10.7759/cureus.40677. eCollection 2023 Jun.

Authors

Adam Kurnick¹, Alam Ahmed¹, Joseph Gonzalez², Adam S Budzikowski²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Internal Medicine, The State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, USA.
² Division of Cardiovascular Medicine - Electrophysiology (EP) Section, The State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, USA.

Abstract

We present a unique and rare case of a young female patient who presented with complaints typical of her prior panic attacks and was found to have a junctional escape rhythm on ECG. Upon resolution of her symptoms, a repeat ECG demonstrated a return to normal sinus rhythm. Given that alternative etiologies had been ruled out, it was postulated that her panic attack induced a transient junctional escape rhythm.

Keywords: cardiac stress test; electrocardiogram (ecg/ekg); junctional escape rhythm; panic attack; panic disorder.

Publication types

Case Reports