Left atrial enlargement (P mitrale) & right atrial enlargement (P pulmonale) on ECG

Left atrial enlargement (P mitrale) & right atrial enlargement (P pulmonale) on ECG

Atrial enlargement: left atrial enlargement (P mitrale) and right atrial enlargement (P pulmonale) The atria may become dilated and/or hypertrophic during pathological circumstances. As for ventricular enlargement, the  ECG  cannot differentiate dilatation from hypertrophy, which is why some experts have suggested that the term  atrial abnormality  be used instead of enlargement. Atrial enlargement/abnormality often accompanies ventricular enlargement. The  ECG  has, as one could expect, low sensitivity but high specificity with respect to detecting atrial enlargement.  Left atrial enlargement is also referred to as P mitrale , and  right atrial enlargement is often referred to as P pulmonale . The reasons for this are explained below. The normal P-wave contour on ECG The normal  P-wave  (Figure 1, upper panel) is typically smooth, symmetric and positive. The P-wave in lead II may, however, be slightly asymmetric by having two humps. This is often (but not always) seen on ordinary ECG tracings and i…

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