Heart arrhythmia is a fairly common disease, ignoring which can lead to the worst consequences. The essence of the disease is that the work of the main human organ, the rhythm of its contractions, is disrupted. A separate form is sinus arrhythmia of the heart, which is considered normal and safe within certain limits. Treatment can be diverse. It depends on the form and stage of the disease. In any case, if you find its first signs, you should immediately contact a doctor.
Causes
A variety of factors can provoke arrhythmia. The most common include diseases that are directly related to the work of the heart. These are diseases of the brain, circulatory and cardiovascular systems, myocardial disorders, problems of the thyroid gland and adrenal glands. Cardiac arrhythmia, the causes and symptoms of which can appear during infectious diseases or during the climatic period, requires immediate examination and treatment. The basis for the development of the disease can be violations of a healthy lifestyle: lack of vitamins, overweight, alcohol and smoking, stress and excessive stress, both emotional and physical.
Symptoms
The presence of such a disease immediately makes itself felt, therefore, it is easy to identify it. Arrhythmia of the heart, the causes and symptoms of which indicate problems of a different nature, may be accompanied by weakness and pain in the region of the heart and chest. They sometimes give in the left hand. Patients may have the impression that the heart does not beat. Sometimes, with a diagnosis of "cardiac arrhythmia", patients' reviews note the appearance of dry mouth, cough, dizziness, shortness of breath, fever, fainting.
Types of disease
Depending on the nature, arrhythmia is divided into several types that differ in symptoms and treatment methods. If the heart rate decreases sharply, then we can talk about the development of bradycardia. Increased heart rate indicates tachycardia. If extraordinary contractions occur and their number gradually increases, then these are symptoms of extrasystole. With atrial fibrillation, heart contractions are uneven. Slowing and cessation of impulse passage through the structure of the myocardium indicates the presence of heart block. This is a very dangerous condition, since the pulse may not be felt at all. Sinus arrhythmia, ventricular fibrillation, and atrial flutter are also distinguished.
Extrasystole
Extrasystoles are heart contractions that are made prematurely. The source of their electrical impulse is not in the sinus node. Arrhythmia of this nature can accompany any heart disease, but in most cases it is impossible to establish a connection with it. Often among these ailments, autonomic and psycho-emotional disorders, smoking, drug treatment. Extrasystoles are not felt by patients, which can lead to a sinking heart.
Believe that gastric extrasystoles are the most unpleasant and dangerous. They can cause ventricular fibrillation.
Atrial fibrillation
Another name for this type is atrial fibrillation. It develops as a complication of normal heart rhythm disturbances. This is one of the most common heart rhythm disturbances. Among the causes of the development of the disease, it is worth highlighting problems with the thyroid gland. Symptoms of atrial fibrillation are not very different from other types of disease. The patient is often disturbed by fainting, darkening in the eyes, a sense of fear, chest pain, lack of air.
The nature of the arrhythmia can be different - from a short attack lasting several minutes to a protracted state, which is measured in days. In the first case, it is not necessary to use medicines or other medical measures, but in the second case one can not do without medical intervention.
Atrial flutter
The frequency of heart contractions with atrial flutter can reach 400 per minute. The problem very rarely arises by itself. Most often, the violation is associated with other cardiac dysfunctions. The causes of atrial flutter are organic heart disease, preliminary coronary artery bypass grafting, or surgery. The clinical picture of the pathology is characterized by a sharp increase in the frequency of contractions of the heart, a violation of its rhythm, general weakness, low blood pressure. A patient against this background often faints and faints. Often there are cases when atrial flutter passes into fibrillation.
Supraventricular Tachycardia
This pathology is known by another name - atrial tachycardia. The disease develops in a small area of atrial tissue. Over time, the whole heart becomes inflamed and the natural rhythm is disturbed. The presence of this disease implies a periodic acceleration of the heart rhythm, not caused by physical exertion, fever or stress. Symptoms in each case may be different. In some patients, the disease may not be manifested in any way or only manifested by an increase in pulsation. In other cases, dizziness, fainting, sweating, pain or pressure in the chest area, fatigue, frequent urination are observed.
Ventricular tachycardia
The essence of pathology is that it causes an acceleration of the heart rhythm that comes from the ventricles. At a rhythm frequency of up to 200 beats per minute, the heart cannot properly fill up with blood. As a result, blood is pushed into the body in smaller portions. This type of arrhythmia is especially difficult in those patients who already suffer from other heart diseases.
Ventricular tachycardia is divided into persistent and unstable. In the first case, a decrease in the pulsation frequency and a decrease in blood pressure are observed. Also, patients can suffer from excessive sweating, impaired consciousness. If symptoms of this type of arrhythmia are detected, qualified assistance is needed. After all, this threatens a spontaneous stop of blood circulation. Such a cardiac arrhythmia, the causes and symptoms of which are not pronounced, is detected only when monitoring the ECG.
Ventricular fibrillation
Disease involves a disorganized stream of impulses from the ventricles in a continuous manner, which causes ventricular flutter. As a result, pumping of blood through the body is complicated, which requires immediate resuscitation in the cardiopulmonary department. The condition is very dangerous in that if you do not provide assistance to a person within 10 minutes, then this can be fatal. The blood supply to the body does not occur, while the heart contracts with a frequency of 300 beats per minute. Symptoms of the pathology can resemble a picture of clinical death, namely the absence of breathing and pulse, dilated pupils, loss of consciousness, the appearance of seizures, and blue skin.
Symptoms of Sinus Arrhythmia
Such arrhythmia of the heart, the causes and symptoms of which are similar to the characteristics of a normal disorder, occurs due to an irregular sinus rhythm. This type of disease is characterized by irregularity and uneven formation of an impulse in the nerve node. The disease can be detected without difficulty, since at the first stage there is a fainting or pre-fainting state, dizziness, sudden and prolonged fatigue. Symptoms appear with sudden and long pauses between contractions. The reason for the occurrence of such pauses lies in the blockade of sinus impulses and the impossibility of passing through the tissues. In some cases, sinus arrhythmia can be accompanied by darkening in the eyes, sudden fainting, sudden shortness of breath, fast or excessively slow heartbeat, chest pain.
Symptoms of heart block
The reason for this variant of arrhythmia is a slowdown in the processes of conducting impulses. Blockages appear in the intraventricular form, in the atrioventricular and sinoatrial. The degree of blockade is from I to III. Their character may be persistent or transitory. Blockades can be caused by the use of certain medications, myocarditis, cardiosclerosis, myocardial infarction. Very rarely in practice there is a congenital variant of this pathology. The symptoms of blockade include the appearance of convulsions and fainting. As a result of the development, the disease can cause heart failure, angina pectoris, or sudden onset of death.
Treatment and prevention
If a person has heart arrhythmia, treatment, medication or hospitalization are simply necessary, since the consequences can be the worst. Actions should be primarily aimed at reducing symptoms and combating the root cause. When a patient is diagnosed with such a serious disease as cardiac arrhythmia, the symptoms, treatment and behavior of the patient should be fully consistent with each other and work in conjunction. To overcome the disease as efficiently as possible, you need to abandon bad habits, avoid stress, eat rationally, and lead a healthy lifestyle. It is categorically not recommended to overload yourself with physical work, because this is also a strong load on the heart.
Drug treatment
If a patient is diagnosed with a cardiac arrhythmia, what is the most common question to take? Firstly, you should consult a doctor who will prescribe treatment depending on the type of pathology and the severity of the condition. As a rule, the first actions should be a lifestyle change, drug therapy or surgical procedures. As for drugs, in most cases, antiarrhythmic drugs are prescribed. In order not to encounter the grave consequences that heart arrhythmia can cause, treatment, drugs or surgery should be taken without delay. To avoid a stroke due to the formation of blood clots, you need to take anticoagulant and antiplatelet drugs.
Other treatments
With the development of the disease "cardiac arrhythmia" treatment, medications and drugs can be ineffective. In cases where medications are unable to resolve the problem, they perform cardioversion. The essence of the procedure is that a temporarily acting anesthetic is injected into the chest, and then an electric current is sent to this area. As a result, the work of the heart is synchronized, an adequate heart rhythm is restored. Some forms of the disease are treated with a cardioverter defibrillator, which is implanted to monitor and support the heart muscle.
Surgical intervention can be used to eliminate the root cause of arrhythmia. The operation is performed on a maze when sections along the left and right atria are incised. Sometimes after the operation, the pacemaker is implanted to the patient.
In case of suspicion of the development of any type of ailment "heart arrhythmia", prevention will help to avoid possible consequences and conduct treatment more effectively. Each individual case of the disease requires a thorough examination, proper diagnosis and adequate treatment, so if you have characteristic symptoms, you should immediately consult a doctor.