Clinical Resources

February 1, 2007—This is the second of six articles designed to upgrade the guidelines for the standardization and interpretation of the ECG. This statement provides a concise list of diagnostic terms for ECG interpretation that can be shared by students, teachers, and readers of electrocardiography. An intended outcome of this statement list is greater uniformity of ECG diagnosis and a resultant improvement in patient care. The lexicon includes primary diagnostic statements, secondary diagnostic statements, modifiers, and statements for the comparison of ECGs. This diagnostic lexicon should be reviewed and updated periodically.

January 18, 2007—This addendum to a 1996 advisory addresses driving restrictions in patients who receive an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) for primary prevention.

October 1, 2006—Developed in collaboration with the Heart Rhythm Society, this competence statement was designed to assist in the assessment of physicians' competence on a procedure-specific basis. The update specifies the minimum education, training, experience, and cognitive and technical skills necessary for the competent performance of invasive cardiac electrophysiology, catheter ablation, and cardioversion.

See 2015 ACC/AHA/HRS Advanced Training Statement on Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology (A Revision of the ACC/AHA 2006 Update of the Clinical Competence Statement on Invasive Electrophysiology Studies, Catheter Ablation, and Cardioversion) and 2017 ACC/HRS Lifelong Learning Statement for Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology Specialists.

September 5, 2006—The guideline, jointly created by the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, and the European Society of Cardiology and endorsed by the Heart Rhythm Society, provides an update on and combines the previously published recommendations regarding the management of patients with ventricular arrhythmias into one source.

 This document has been retired and replaced by 2017 AHA/ACC/HRS Guideline for Management of Patients with Ventricular Arrhythmias and the Prevention of Sudden Cardiac Death. 

August 15, 2006—These guidelines present a comprehensive review of the latest information about the definition, classification, epidemiology, pathophysiological mechanisms, and clinical characteristics of atrial fibrillation. The management of this complex and potentially dangerous arrhythmia is then reviewed.

 This document has been retired and replaced by 2014 AHA/ACC/HRS Guideline for the Management of Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

See also 2019 AHA/ACC/HRS Focused Update of the 2014 AHA/ACC/HRS Guideline for the Management of Patients With Atrial Fibrillation.

June 6, 2006—This update was developed in collaboration with the American Society of Echocardiography, the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology, the Heart Rhythm Society, the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, and the Society for Vascular Medicine and Biology.

March 20, 2006—Following the recall event in 2005, the Guidant Corporation commissioned an independent panel charged with studying, analyzing, and evaluating the policies and procedure of the cardiac rhythm management (CRM) business with regard to postmarket device surveillance. This report summarizes the findings and recommendations of the panel.

 This document has been retired because it is no longer current.

February 21, 2006—Endorsed by the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), this is an update to the 2002 COCATS 2 Task Force 6. 

See 2008 Task Force 6: Training in Specialized Electrophysiology, Cardiac Pacing, and Arrhythmia Management. 

September 23, 2005—This is the first study designed to look at the relation between patient outcomes and physicians'/hospitals' volume of cardioverter-defibrillator implantation to determine whether implantation should be limited to physicians with high procedural volume.

September 16, 2005—Conference presented by the Heart Rhythm Society and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.