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Cardiac Arrhythmia - Medical Negligence
Also Known as Heart Arrhythmias
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Problems with the rhythm of the heart involve changes in the way electrical impulses pass through the heart and cause the heart to beat. If the rhythm of the heart is not functioning properly, your heart can go too fast, too slow or can simply be irregular. A heart with a bad rhythm going on is more than likely not beating properly so you can have effects going into your whole body.
Almost everyone has had an irregular heartbeat every once in a while. These are generally completely harmless and feel like a flutter in your chest or like your heart is racing for a minute or two. There are, however, serious heart arrhythmias that can occur which are life threatening and dangerous.
Some arrhythmias cause no particular signs or symptoms. If you have symptoms, the most common symptoms are fluttering in the chest, a slow heartbeat, a racing heart, lightheadedness, shortness of breath, dizziness, or fainting spells. If you notice signs and symptoms from a cardiac arrhythmia, you should seek medical attention because it can indicate a serious problem. If the symptom is severe, call 911 for immediate attention. Make sure everyone in your household knows CPR. If you are in a public space, look for a portable defibrillator that can be life saving if used on the right person in the right way.
Normally, your heart originates a "beat" in the sinus node up in the atria of the heart. The signal is sent to the atrioventricular node and then it travels down the septum of the heart to the ventricles where the heart beats and sends blood to the lungs and the rest of the body. If something goes wrong with the nodes or with any of the pathways of the heart, it can lead to an arrhythmia. A heart beats normally at the rate of 60 to 100 beats per minute.
Arrhythmias can be caused by damage to the heart, such as in a heart attack. High blood pressure can cause a heart arrhythmia. Diabetes, high thyroid conditions, smoking, alcohol intake to excess, drug use, medications, herbal remedies and stress can all impact the development of a heart arrhythmia. Damage to the valves of the heart can cause arrhythmias.
There are two main types of arrhythmias: bradycardia and tachycardia. Bradycardia happens when the heart rhythm is too slow (less than 60) and tachycardia happens when the heart rhythm is too fast (greater than 100). You can have arrhythmias with a normal heart rate as well but most are not considered dangerous.
Tachycardias include atrial fibrillation, in which the atrial signal is chaotic and only the ventricular signal is normal. Atrial flutter occurs when the sinus node is sending out rapid signals to the ventricle, causing the ventricles to beat faster. You can have supraventricular tachycardia as well, which involves a very fast rhythm coming from the sinus node. It's caused from a single electrical beat recycling itself repeatedly. Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome is a type of supraventricular tachycardia that is considered hereditary. Ventricular tachycardia is dangerous and involves the rapid beating of just the ventricles. Blood can't fill up the ventricles fast enough to be sent to the body and the individual develops symptoms. The beat can be as fast as 200 beats per minute. In ventricular fibrillation, there is an irregular ventricular rhythm that leads quickly to unconsciousness and death if not treated.
Causes of bradycardia include having a "sick sinus" syndrome where the sinus node only beats at a slow rate. If you have a conduction block, the sinus node signal doesn't get transmitted to the ventricles fast enough and your heart beats too slowly.
Risk factors for heart arrhythmias include advancing age, genetic issues, previous heart surgery, heart damage or coronary artery disease, thyroid issues, certain supplements and drugs, obesity, hypertension, sleep apnea, having an imbalance in your electrolytes, drinking alcohol, and using caffeine or nicotine.
Doctors use an EKG or ECG machine, which is an electrocardiogram, to follow the signals of the heart. If the arrhythmia doesn't happen all the time, the doctor will prescribe a Holter monitor, which detects heart rhythm problems over a 24 hour period of time. An event recorder will detect rhythm problems that only occur sporadically. A CT scan can be done on the heart to see if it is too large or if there are calcifications to the heart. An echocardiogram can check on the strength of the heart beat in the atria and ventricles. Stress tests can trigger arrhythmias while a person is walking on a treadmill and stressing their heart. A tilt table test checks the rhythm of the heart while a person is gradually moved to a standing position on a table. The most conclusive test involves doing electrophysiologic testing on the heart to see what rhythm problems happen to be in the heart.