In the article, we will understand why the heart beats intermittently and what to do.
A person may suddenly have an arrhythmia attack. That is why you need to know the procedure for heart failure. First of all, you should call an ambulance. Then a cold compress is applied to the head or neck. With a rapid heartbeat, you can slow down the rhythm if you click on the root of the tongue. Doctors advise you to relax, breathe deeply and not make sudden movements if the heart beats intermittently. Missing hits are for everyone. Is it dangerous?
Risk group
If a person has close relatives experienced arrhythmia, it is advisable to be examined regularly by a cardiologist. Also at risk include:
- patients with congenital diseases of the heart and blood vessels;
- women in menopause;
- adolescents;
- patients who are overweight;
- men after 45 years;
- patients who have thyroid abnormalities.
In addition, the heart beats intermittently in people whose activities are associated with increased intellectual or physical stress.
Nerve innervation disorders
Missing beats, intermittent heartbeats - all this is due to a violation of the innervation of the nerves. Such changes cause serious consequences, the emergence of new diseases of the heart and blood vessels. Target organs are also affected: brain, kidneys, blood vessels.
Heart disease in the 21st century occurs even in people at the age of thirty. Improper nutrition, constant stress, an immobile lifestyle, and ignoring chronic diseases (for example, caries) cause disorders of the whole organism. Vessels and the heart are most often affected by unfavorable factors, and the significance of this organ is the constant supply of blood to cells, tissues and organs.
Why does my heart sometimes beat intermittently?
What can break the rhythm? Main reasons
Not every disease can disrupt the coordinated work of the heart rhythm. The heart beats intermittently if there are chronic effects on the human body, since it is difficult to break the nervous innervation of prions, bacteria and viruses. This can only provoke certain factors:
- side effects of drugs;
- myocardial infarction suffered by the patient;
- disorders of the endocrine glands: adrenal glands, hypothalamus, pituitary gland, parathyroid and thyroid glands;
- decompensation of the nervous system, paresis, central paralysis;
- stress;
- uncontrolled use of narcotic compounds (spice, heroin, cocaine, hemp), alcohol and nicotine;
- menopause in women;
- excessive eating and obesity;
- abnormalities of the development of the fetus inside the womb (heart defects - an oval hole or open, Fallot's disease);
- inflammatory cardiac processes: myocarditis, pericarditis, endocarditis;
- high blood pressure;
- poisoning the patient with chemicals.
All this can provoke a situation when the heart beats intermittently and missed beats occur.
The listed factors are most often found in the etiology of heart rhythm defects and medical practice. Missed heart beats occur after a patient has had a myocardial infarction. A site with necrosis overgrows under a scab; here, connective tissue forms in the form of a scar. Local coronary blood flow is disturbed when systole occurs (contraction of the heart), a specific area of the myocardium falls out. Many people wonder why the heart beats intermittently. The reasons should be determined by the doctor.
Violations of the nervous system have a slightly different principle of action. Stressful situations activate the sympathetic part of the vegetative system, due to which there are emissions of catecholamines (dopamine, adrenaline), cortisol (stress hormone), antidiuretic hormone. The action of substances on the cortex of the sinus-atrial node begins (it controls the rhythm of the contractions of the heart), the cerebral cortex, the medulla oblongata, in which the center of the heartbeat is located. The appearance of tachycardia (increased heart rate), and when everything subsides, tachycardia (increased heart rate) occurs, and when everything goes away, missed heartbeats begin.
Cardiac activity is carried out due to the sinus node, which regulates the heart rate. In addition, it can rhythmically generate electrical impulses that propagate through the myocardium of the atria and ventricles.
A healthy person has a wide range of impulse frequency changes. It all depends on the requirements of the body. For example, in a state of rest (late at night, etc.) with a low need for blood flow to organs, the pulse frequency from the sinus node and heart rate, respectively, decreases to 60-50 (sometimes 45) times per minute.
In the afternoon, if there are physical and emotional stress, heart rate rises. With physical overstrain, the frequency of contractions can reach 120, in some cases 150-160 strokes per minute.
Often in the supine position, the heart beats intermittently.
Violation of the sinus node
If pathological situations develop, a violation of the sinus node is observed. New activations can form in various areas of the myocardium, which compete with it and even suppress its functioning in some cases. Direct wave propagation may be blocked. Such unpleasant phenomena are characteristic of arrhythmia - interruptions in the heart. In this condition, deviations in the regularity of contractions, strength and frequency are observed.
It is very unpleasant when the heart beats intermittently. Missing strikes can occur with a favorable prognosis, and with a danger to human life.
All arrhythmias have similar symptoms. The main signs are a feeling of fading of heart activity, an uneven heartbeat and pulse. In some cases, dizziness, fainting, and weakness are also noted.
May appear against the background of pathologies of the heart and blood vessels, nervous disorders, endocrine diseases, taking certain dosage forms, physical exertion, depression, severe stress, excessive consumption of energy and alcohol drinks, hypothermia, smoking. These factors especially often contribute to the appearance of arrhythmias:
- Heart failure can be of various types.
- Tachycardia is a condition often of a heartbeat.
- Extrasystole is characterized by irregular, extraordinary contractions of the heart with respect to the frequency corresponding to the norm.
- Atrial fibrillation is an irregular, inferior heartbeat.
- Bradycardia is a slow rhythm.
It must be said at the same time that during the day, in any healthy person, sometimes the heart beats intermittently. Such conditions do not threaten his health, do not transform into more significant rhythmic disorders. Most people do not feel such extrasystoles. They are determined randomly when a regular ECG is performed.
But there are also especially sensitive people who, being absolutely healthy, feel heart failure. For many patients with a diagnosis of vegetative-vascular dystonia, it seems that the heart stops, stops and starts again. But such "feelings" in most cases, they fail.
Naturally, in patients with vegetative-vascular dystonia, cardiac activity disorders may appear. At the same time, functional failures are natural and normal phenomena.
In many situations, the selection of therapeutic tactics is difficult to resolve. This is due to the fact that all antiarrhythmic drugs have quite a lot of undesirable effects, in particular, they have the ability to cause new arrhythmia, in many situations even more severe. Nevertheless, if there are sharp failures, they tend to stop them. Perhaps this is through the use of both non-drug exposure method and drugs. However, self-medication is not allowed in any situation. When the heart beats intermittently, specialist advice is required.
A person sometimes begins to clearly feel his heartbeat. It can be perceived as interruption or fluttering in the neck, throat or heart.
Similar attacks mainly last for several seconds / minutes. With a strong heartbeat, an anxious feeling appears, but in most cases it is not dangerous and can occur in completely healthy people. Worse, if the heartbeat is accompanied by other symptoms, for example, a feeling of tightness and compression in the chest, dizziness. In this case, we can assume that there are pathologies of the heart (we will discuss them below). That is why a mandatory visit to a specialist is required. If the heart beats intermittently, what to do, consider below.
There are many causes of heart failure or a strong heartbeat. Excessive nervousness, overstrain of the nervous system, excitement and anxiety most often lead to a violation of cardiac activity. In such cases, a lot of adrenaline is released into the blood, that is, a hormone that can cause a strong and rapid heartbeat.
Causes of heart failure can be: spicy foods, overeating, abuse of drinks containing caffeine, or alcohol, “soft” drugs and dependence on nicotine.
If something from this list refers to a particular person, he should change his usual way of life: try to reduce the degree of nervousness and stress, for example, through relaxation techniques and special restrictions, reduce the use of energy drinks and caffeine, and avoid the so-called lungs drugs.
Panic attacks
With excitement, anxiety and stress, panic attacks can also develop, accompanied by an accelerated heartbeat. A panic attack is characterized by a feeling of fear, sweating, nausea and trembling. This condition is most often not at all dangerous, but painful.
In more rare situations, increased heart rate is a side effect of a number of drugs, for example, asthma inhalers, and thyroid therapy pills.
If there is an assumption that it is certain drugs that caused such a heartbeat, you can’t stop taking them yourself, you need to consult a specialist.
Heartbeat may be due to hormonal changes in the female body during critical days, menopause, or pregnancy. However, in such a situation, interruptions in cardiac activity are a temporary phenomenon, and you should not worry about this.
In some cases, when the heart beats intermittently, the cause of this can be dangerous pathologies.
Disruptions and heart palpitations
The conditions and diseases listed below can cause the heart to work arrhythmically, more often, and harder:
- excessive activity of the thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism);
- anemia (anemia);
- low blood sugar of the patient (hypoglycemia);
- low blood pressure (hypotension);
- high temperature (fever) from 38 degrees or more;
- fluid deficiency in the body (dehydration);
- directly heart problems.
In what cases does a heartbeat indicate organ disease?
If a person began to experience more severe and frequent heart attacks compared to what it was, accompanied by symptoms such as a feeling of tightness in the chest, dizziness, sweating, you need to consult a specialist. Perhaps cardiac arrhythmias occur, and arrhythmia develops. Why the heart beats intermittently, it is important to find out.
When a person complains of a heartbeat, the specialist should prescribe him an ECG (electrocardiogram) to assess the conductivity and heart rate. This study makes it possible to instantly determine rhythm interruptions, as well as prescribe the necessary treatment. But, in some situations, a completely normal recording may appear on the film. This happens if a heartbeat was not felt during the ECG. Then the doctor can prescribe additional studies to the patient, for example, ECG monitoring during the day, when during this time cardiac activity is recorded on a special portable device, and the patient can carry it with him everywhere.
To establish the exact cause of heart failure, a special examination is required. If a doctor identifies any violation of conduction and heart rate, you need to ask him to talk about this in detail.
So, the heart beats intermittently. Missing strikes should in no case be left without attention.
Treatment
What to do in this situation?
- Treat the underlying disorder that caused heart rhythm disturbances.
- If the heart beats intermittently, what to accept? First of all, to correct bradycardia with drugs (anticholinergics, xanthines). Suitable Trental, Agapurin, Atropine.
- If there is a big risk of cardiac arrest, install a pacemaker (pacemaker).
The choice of tactics is determined by the stage of the disease and the presence of the clinic. With interruptions in the rhythm due to myocardial damage, complete recovery will not occur.
Physiological bradycardia in athletes and trained people does not require treatment, as well as bradyarrhythmia without symptoms.
Treatment aimed at eliminating heart rhythm disturbances should be comprehensive and depend on the reasons that influenced it. Prevention and therapy are prescribed by a specialist based on diagnostic results. Measures may include the use of drugs and a special diet. In some cases, surgery is required.
Sometimes after drinking, the heart beats intermittently.
After alcohol intoxication
After alcohol, arrhythmia can pass by itself in a few hours, however, it can be very dangerous. Urgently need to call an ambulance with increased arrhythmia during a hangover or the occurrence of such symptoms: fainting or a condition before fainting; sharp weakness; sudden fear of dying; pain in the heart, dizziness; dyspnea.
Prevention
A preventive measure is to maintain a healthy lifestyle. It is necessary to abandon salted, fatty foods, as well as bad habits. An essential condition is sports. However, one must remember the moderation of physical activity.