Tachycardia is a pathological condition whose characteristic feature is an increased heart rate. The rhythm of the contractions is uniform, the intervals between heart beats along the length are constant. Tachycardia is a term for a symptom inherent in many diseases. Tachycardia is not an independent pathology. They diagnose it if the heart rate per minute exceeds a hundred, and the beats are distinct, strong. Often the condition is accompanied by a pulsating cervical veins and vessels visible to the eye. At the same time, the patient is dizzy, breathing becomes heavier, there is a feeling of imminent loss of consciousness, general weakness. It often hurts in the chest, darkens in the eyes.
general information
Normally, in a healthy person, the heart beats with a frequency of contractions per minute of 60 to 80 beats, which is not felt at all. The pulse with tachycardia is quickened to hundreds of strokes and higher, which greatly affects the general well-being, quickly attracts attention. Often the heart beats faster if the person is faced with increased physical exertion, if fever begins, or the ambient temperature rises sharply. The response of the body in the form of a rapid heartbeat with nervous excitement, excitement, and overeating will be completely normal. If the increase in heart rate is provoked by natural causes, talking about tachycardia is incorrect. The condition becomes pathological if the pulse quickens when the person is calm.
The contraction of the heart muscle is due to the peculiarities of its structure - the presence of cells in the right half, in the area separating the ventricles from the atrium, as well as directly in the atria. In anatomy, cells are called pacemakers. The accumulation of structures on the right side of the organ is the sinus node, the most important element that sets the frequency and speed of the heartbeat. In addition to it, there are other elements through which cardiac contractions are organized, but all of them are secondary (His bundle, Purkinje fibers, atrioventricular node). The heart muscle is excited due to the activity of the sinus node, after which the secondary nodes transmit impulses further, affecting the ventricles.
Why is the heart rate disturbed?
Most often, the cause of tachycardia is a disease that affects the functioning of the main organ of the human body, but only they are not exhausted. It is customary to distinguish two groups of factors: inside the heart and outside the organ. Unites their ability to disrupt the performance of pacemakers. If the cause is outside the heart, the sinus node that produces too many pulses is the first to call on it. Most often, this condition is fixed against the background:
- pathologies of the endocrine system;
- an excess of cardiac glycosides;
- impaired functionality of the nervous system;
- decrease in blood volumes.
Tachycardia is a frequent companion of hypothalamic syndrome, goiter and pheochromocytoma. Heart palpitations can be triggered by an excess of caffeine, anesthetics, a number of specific substances of the psychotropic group. Dehydration or sudden sudden blood loss can cause a violation of the rhythm of the heartbeat. Another possible cause is an infectious disease.
If one of these causes is detected, sinus tachycardia is diagnosed.
Intrinsic factors
The second type of tachycardia is provoked by disorders of the heart muscle. Provoke an increase in rhythm can:
- heart disease;
- myocarditis;
- atherosclerosis, significantly impairing the quality of the circulatory system;
- myocardial scarring;
- impulse conduction.
With these phenomena, they speak about the incorrect operation of second-level pacemakers.
In addition to pacemakers, the cause of the pathological condition may be in other elements inside the heart. This allows us to talk about supraventricular, ventricular tachycardia. With ventricular loss of consciousness is more often observed, a fatal outcome is possible.
In general, tachycardia is a dangerous condition, because an increased heart rate does not allow the body to be qualitatively filled with blood, which means that the supply of oxygen and the nutritional components of cells is weakened - this leads to oxygen starvation. In such a situation, not only the heart suffers at the same time, but also other organs and tissues of the body. Tachycardia can cause ischemia, heart attack, angina pectoris.
Establishing diagnosis
To understand whether tachycardia is bothering or whether the reason for feeling unwell is something else, you should visit a doctor in a timely manner. The diagnosis can be formulated by a cardiologist, therapist. To clarify the condition of the patient, they are sent to laboratory and instrumental studies. You will have to pass a general blood test and a biochemical test, submit urine samples to the laboratory for examination. It is recommended to make a coagulogram, undergo an examination for hormonal activity of the thyroid gland.
To clarify the features of cardiac arrhythmias in tachycardia, it is recommended to do echocardiography, X-ray, electrocardiography, as well as undergo pacing. Useful information can be obtained from Holter research and bicycle ergometry.
What to do?
When the doctor at the appointment will explain to the patient what it is - tachycardia of the heart, they will definitely focus on the fact that this condition is not a disease, but only indicates the presence of a certain pathology, health impairment. Tachycardia is actually a symptom, and the fight against it is to identify and eliminate the root cause.
The therapeutic course, if tachycardia on the ECG is confirmed, includes a targeted fight against symptoms. The key role is given to medicines from the group of beta-blockers, as well as anti-arrhythmia drugs. Choose a dosage, evaluating the strength of the unpleasant symptom, the condition of the patient, concomitant diseases, age, tolerance of different types of drugs. Often, efficiencies are achieved by a combination with sedatives.
If sinus tachycardia is established, the doctor may recommend a catheter-assisted destruction to bring the sinus node back to normal.
Attention to all aspects
Explaining to the patient what it is - tachycardia of the heart, where the problem came from and how to deal with it, the doctor will definitely pay attention to the need to adjust the lifestyle. Without this, the problem cannot be eliminated. With an increased heart rate, you need to rest regularly and give yourself adequate sleep time, walk in parks, forests, and calm places. Any stressful situations should be carefully avoided, remember that excessive exercise can cause an exacerbation of the symptom, but light exercises will benefit, strengthen health, stabilize the heart muscle.
Of course, you will have to completely abandon any bad habits. Tachycardia is not combined with either alcohol or smoking. Harmful substances entering the body can provoke another attack.
Another important aspect is the proper diet. Help with tachycardia to yourself is an exception to the diet of heavy meals, caffeine. Have to give up chocolate. Instead, you should consume more fruits, vegetables, drink plenty of clean water without additives. Vitamin complexes will benefit, however, you should first consult your doctor. Especially good results are shown in potassium and magnesium rich compounds.
Prevention is the best treatment
In order not to have to figure out how to treat tachycardia, it makes sense to eliminate any detected pathologies as soon as possible. If there is a suspicion of infection, inflammation, disruption of the endocrine system, you should visit a doctor to clarify the condition and choose the optimal program. It is reasonable to completely exclude bad habits from your life and switch to a healthy diet - this significantly reduces the likelihood of any heart disorders. Another important aspect is the organization of everyday life in such a way as to minimize stress, evenly distribute the load, and rest regularly.
Less often they recognize on themselves how tachycardia is manifested, persons involved in sports. Physical activity should be in moderation, regular, taking into account the state of the body. Experts recommend starting a heart rate monitor and using it during training. If the heart rate becomes too high, the device will immediately draw attention to this.
Pathological tachycardia: features
According to the ICD, the tachycardia code is I47. These symbols coded the state when, at rest or under mild stress, the heart rate increases sharply; the duration of the attack is a quarter of an hour or longer. It is with such symptoms that one may suspect that it is time to visit a doctor.
It is known that pathological tachycardia often accompanies:
- pericarditis;
- endocarditis;
- cardiosclerosis;
- heart failure.
In addition, tachycardia is possible with anemia, hypertensive crisis and hypoglycemia, if a person has diabetes. A significant increase in heart rate is observed against the background of increased activity of the thyroid gland, COPD, asthma.
Do not figure out on your own how to treat tachycardia at home - with such a symptom, you should immediately go to the doctor to understand what is the root cause.
Attack: what to look for?
An attack is one of the typical symptoms of tachycardia. What to do?. It is such a thought that revolves in the head of a person who feels fear and panic. At the same time, it is usually completely impossible to formulate why this condition arose. The attack comes suddenly, accompanied by a premonition of imminent death. The patient weakens, shortness of breath develops, sleep is disturbed, limbs become chilled, and it is almost impossible to warm them. The duration of this condition in some is a few minutes, after which the condition gradually normalizes on its own, but in severe cases, the duration stretches for many hours and even days. You must understand: tachycardia is dangerous for a person in any format, it does not matter how long the attack lasts.
Prolonged, frequent seizures can cause ischemia, but this is far from the only complication dangerous to human life. Against the background of a rapid rhythm of heartbeat, swelling of the respiratory organs and thromboembolism of the lungs, arteries that feed the brain are possible. Tachycardia can cause cardiac asthma and cause arrhythmic shock.
The described complications, accompanying ventricular tachycardia, are highly likely to provoke a fatal outcome. Future mothers should be especially careful: tachycardia during pregnancy occurs quite often, but the list of drugs that are applicable in this condition is extremely limited.
Drugs and Therapy
The main task of the doctor is to determine the reason for the development of tachycardia, to eliminate the primary source of the problem. At the same time, the patient is prescribed drugs to alleviate the condition. All known modern means intended to normalize the frequency and speed of the pulse have side effects, so it is important to find the cause in time and go directly to its treatment. Long-term therapy of symptoms alone not only does not give a good result, but also creates additional risks for the patient.
When telling the patient what medications for tachycardia can be taken at the patient’s appointment, doctors primarily pay attention to rather weak, but relatively safe formulations made from plant extracts. Reliable medications based on:
- hawthorn;
- peony;
- motherwort;
- rhizomes of valerian.
Good results show Novopassit, Persen. The classic approach is the use of Corvalol.
All of the listed medications help to slightly reduce excitability, normalize sleep. The combination of herbal remedies and the treatment of the root cause of heart rhythm disturbance allows you to quickly achieve a pronounced effect.
Continuing the topic
It also happens that weak sedatives do not show a result, and doctors are not able to determine the root cause of tachycardia. This requires the use of antiarrhythmic drugs to alleviate the condition of the patient. Often used:
- "Bisoprolol";
- Verapamil;
- "Rhythmylene."
Anaprilin, Atenolol, and Etatsizin medicines have a good reputation. Focusing on the patient’s condition, concomitant pathologies, doctors can recommend taking the drugs “Adenosine”, “Cordaron”, “Diltiazem”.
As can be seen from the listing, the list is quite large, but to choose among all this variety the tool at your discretion is categorically not recommended. High probability of side effects, deterioration of the patient. In practice, doctors most often prescribe drugs from the category of adrenergic receptor inhibitors, calcium antagonists. If drug therapy does not give a pronounced result, the patient is advised to schedule an operation. In this case, a special device is installed, responsible for the rhythm of contraction of the heart muscle.
There was an attack: what to do?
The strongest fear is the first occurrence of a tachycardia attack, but the recurrence of such situations also provokes such an emotion, albeit not so pronounced. The consequences of an attack largely depend on timely assistance. If a person feels an increased heart rate, you should seek help. From the side, you can notice unhealthy by the pallor of the skin. Having established that a possible cause is an attack of tachycardia, you should promptly call an ambulance or call a local doctor if such a specialist is available in the building.
Others need to try to reassure the patient, realizing that the person at this moment is very afraid of death. If there is a tie, a belt among the clothes, you should unfasten, dissolve any fettering movement, tight clothes. The top buttons are unfastened on the shirt. If the patient is indoors, open the windows, providing an influx of fresh cool air.
Even before the arrival of the doctor, first aid should be provided - give a drink of valerian, Corvalol or another effective sedative. You can put a napkin soaked in cold water on your forehead. To make the patient easier, you need to hold your breath, tighten your abdominals, then relax. Even if a person refuses hospitalization, one should insist on it. After the attack, it is important to enroll in a clinic for a full examination as soon as possible.
It's important to know
In some publications, you can find the following advice: with an attack of tachycardia, you need to click on the eyeballs, cough. In fact, such help is extremely controversial: the procedure can show a positive effect with the sinus form of the pathology, but with the ventricular it will lead to a worsening of the situation. It is better not to risk it and not apply the method.
Interesting position
Quite often, tachycardia occurs during pregnancy. All the reasons for this condition are not known to doctors to this day. It is believed that a change in the hormonal background, a sharp increase in weight and iron deficiency in the blood play a role. Increased metabolism, low blood pressure, and water-electrolyte imbalance can affect heart rate. Of course, the reason may be in the pathology with which the expectant mother is sick. Medicine even knows such cases when the growth of the uterus provoked a displacement of the heart.
The particular complexity of tachycardia in pregnant women is the limited methods for stopping unpleasant symptoms. If you are concerned about bouts, you need to see a doctor. Doctors will recommend which formulations should be used. As a rule, these are natural sedatives created on herbal ingredients. You should also completely abandon coffee, instead, drink chamomile, mint tea.
About forecasts
In general, tachycardia will not be a serious life threat if the patient has been examined and carefully follows medical advice. Modern drugs help to adjust the heart rate in a variety of cases. True, you have to change your lifestyle - without this, you should not count on the long-term effect of therapy.
The prognosis is slightly worse if tachycardia develops against a background of severe pathology. This applies to the failure of the heart muscle, heart attack in the acute stage and other similar diseases dangerous to humans.
But inattention and neglect of one’s health can be the cause of serious negative consequences for the body. Lack of adequate treatment provokes complications, sooner or later leads to death. You can’t try to cope with the symptoms of heart disease on your own - this can lead to serious consequences.
To summarize
Tachycardia is a pathological condition provoked by various diseases, in which the rhythm of the heartbeat significantly increases. Tachycardia can cause various complications, including death. The modern medical approach is the treatment of the root cause that caused cardiac abnormalities, and only the secondary course is symptomatic therapy.