Suddenly, it rumbles in the chest, then absolute silence. Such short-term attacks are usually harmless – but sometimes they are also harbingers of heart disease.

What happens when the heart beats?

Approximately 60 – to 80-times a minute, pulls together a healthy heart muscle to relax again a bit later, and so pump the blood through the circulatory system. The fact that this rhythm of life is preserved, for it provides a mini power plant, the sinus node in the right ventricle. Regularly sends this little tendon network of electrical impulses that tell the heart to beat. The human heart thus has specialized cells that serve as one of the electrical impulse formation and, second, the propagation of these pulses over the entire heart muscle.
If the sinus node, there is no long radio silence. Another area of ??the power line, AV-node called a jump. Denied even this emergency, can the His bundle of fibers over the role of the clock, but with much lower applied pulse sequence of only 40 beats per minute. This is long term enough. Doctors then speak of a dangerous bradycardia. The cycle comes to a standstill and the person may even lose consciousness. Even with the continued turmoil heartbeat, tachycardia in technical language, something is wrong with the “heart electric”. Heart rhythm disturbances can express an organic disease of the heart muscle or isolated injury to be the stimulus generating structures and conduction of the heart. In some cases, the organic or functional basis for heart rhythm disorders can present at birth a person be created. This may include cardiac arrhythmias, either already in early childhood or even occur later in the course of life. Much more often, however – especially in Western industrial nations – the following causes:

* High blood pressure
* Circulatory disorders of the coronary vessels
* Heart attack
* Heart valve defects
* Heart muscle inflammation or
* A pathologically weakened heart.

However, an overactive thyroid, or potassium deficiency the engine to life sometimes a beat. Partly as electrolyte imbalance or medication side effects come as a trigger of heart rhythm disturbances considered. Since the cardiac function is determined to a large extent also influences the autonomic nervous system, psychological factors can also play in the development of cardiac rhythm disorders an important role.
But not every stumbling and irregular heartbeat lies a disease. Stress and physical exertion, caffeine and alcohol, certain medications, the “power” interfere in the heart. The effects are tachycardia and an extra beat, called in technical language extrasystoles.

Symptoms and characteristics

Soft heart forever and from normal pumping rhythm down, could result in serious health problems and sometimes even complete heart failure. The problem: In cardiac arrhythmias is often a marked difference between the assessment of interference by the physician and the patient discomfort. It may happen that perceived self-minute-long, life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias of patients difficult. Other patients may in turn themselves by occasionally repetitive, affect itself completely harmless extra beat of the heart difficult in their state feel.

Depending on the type and duration can cause cardiac rhythm disturbances following symptoms:

* Palpitations, tachycardia
* Irregular heartbeat
* Dizziness, collapse
* Fainting.

In extreme cases, can lead to a malignant arrhythmia or sudden cardiac death.
Important distinguishing features among cardiac rhythm disturbances on the one hand their origin (atrial or ventricular), second, their duration and also the question of whether, in the context of an acute heart disease, such as myocardial infarction, or a chronically damaged hearts auftreten.Grundsätzlich is that cardiac arrhythmias which have their origin in the atrium, relatively harmless, while heart rhythm disturbances that occur in the ventricle, in part – can be life threatening levels – especially in advanced organic heart disease.
Common: atrial flutter

The uncoordinated, rapid twitching of the atria is the most common form of heart arrhythmia. Especially the elderly and people with heart failure are affected by such atrial fibrillation or flutter. Although being the underlying disease should be treated in the first place, so must the atrial fibrillation be parked in order not to worsen heart failure. This is done by a so-called cardioversion, in which the heart with medications or with an electric shock is returned to its normal beat sequences. There are also cases in which treatment of atrial fibrillation is not required. These may, for example, patients who, despite arrhythmias have a normal heart rate and symptom-free. Banned must be with them always the increased risk of blood clots that clog vessels and cause a stroke in the worst case, can.

Life-threatening: Ventricular

Dangerous mode disturbances of the heartbeat will always when they lead to a drastic decrease in pumping power. This happens when at breakneck beat of the heart muscle does not have time to fully pull together, and the heart chambers can not fill with blood. The extreme case is the dreaded ventricular fibrillation, in which the heart muscle twitches just uncoordinated. Up to 300 such irregular beats per minute may increase the pace. In this hell, it is possible the heart rate is not nearly to supply the circuit with blood. Without rapid intervention is the result of heart failure, which kills 350 people a day in Germany. Rescue brings an electric shock that is delivered by a defibrillator. The small device can die to the risk of a life-threatening arrhythmia, almost off. As regards the course of the rhythm disturbances are, in some cases no accurate predictions possible. Heart rhythm disturbances can be either for life or only occur in a particular period of life, or become permanent, unpleasant companions with increasing progress of organic heart disease. To appreciate her character more accurately and a possible treatment plan set up, it is essential for the physician to document the heart rhythm disturbance in sleep or long-term ECG. This means that at the time of the ongoing rhythm disturbance an electrocardiogram must be written.

If the rhythm disturbance clearly diagnosed, the doctor can decide whether an immediate drug therapy is considered and the patient can go home after symptom-free or whether a longer stay in hospital for further evaluation is needed.

Related Posts

• Hypertension
• Several viruses can cause inflammation of the liver
• The 20 largest health mistakes
• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Fatigue Syndrome
• Sound Therapy
• Alternative medicine for cancer
• Bioactive phytochemicals – The new stars of the health care
• Tadacip as an erectile dysfunction medication
• Alternative Medicine