Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

torsades de pointes

/tɔː(ɹ)ˈsɑːd də ˈpwænt/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.18 in modern English

Syllables
tor-sades de -pointes
IPA
/tɔː(ɹ)ˈsɑːd də ˈpwænt/
21
Scrabble Score
17
Letters
3
Syllables
10
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, predisposing to sudden cardiac death and more likely to occur during prolongations of the QT interval.

Uncountable

Etymology

From French torsader (“to twist”), de (“of”), and pointe (“a(n ECG) spike”), from the characteristic/classic appearance of the associated electrocardiogram image of a turning of the QRS complex's orientation around the isoelectric baseline (namely peaks which are at first f.e. pointing up are progressively seen to be diminishing in height and then pointing further and further down for subsequent heartbeats); term coined by the French physician François Dessertenne in 1966.

Usage

Inflected Forms

TdP (alternative) torsade de pointes (alternative) torsade de pointe (alternative) torsades de pointe (alternative) torsades des pointes (alternative) torsade des pointes (alternative)

Synonyms

torsade torsades

Questions

How do you pronounce torsades de pointes?
The recorded pronunciation is /tɔː(ɹ)ˈsɑːd də ˈpwænt/.
What does torsades de pointes mean?
A polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, predisposing to sudden cardiac death and more likely to occur during prolongations of the QT interval.
Where does torsades de pointes come from?
From French torsader (“to twist”), de (“of”), and pointe (“a(n ECG) spike”), from the characteristic/classic appearance of the associated electrocardiogram image of a turning of the QRS complex's orientation around the isoelectric baseline (namely peaks which are at first f.e. pointing up are progressively seen to be diminishing in height and then pointing further and further down for subsequent heartbeats); term coined by the French physician François Dessertenne in 1966.

How to pronounce torsades de pointes

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