For more than 100 years physicians have observed that heartbeats following extrasystolic beats are characterised by augmented myocardial contractility. This phenomenon was termed post-extrasystolic potentiation (PESP). In the 1970s it was first noted that PESP measured at the blood pressure level is typically pronounced in heart failure patients. Only recently, it was shown that PESP measured non-invasively as post-extrasystolic blood pressure potentiation was a strong and independent predictor of death in survivors of myocardial infarction and in patients with chronic heart failure. A similar parameter (PESPAfib) can be also assessed in patients with atrial fibrillation. PESP and PESPAfib can be understood as non-invasive parameters that indicate myocardial dysfunction. They have the potential to improve risk stratification strategies for cardiac patients.
Keywords: Post-extrasystolic potentiation; myocardial infarction; risk prediction.