Arrhythmia isdisturbances that occur in heart rhythm.People with arrhythmias can feel the rhythm of their heart too fast, too slow, or irregular.
Actually a normal arrhythmia occurs in a healthy heart condition. However, if it occurs continuously or repeatedly, arrhythmias can indicate a problem with the heart organ.
The most common types of arrhythmias are:
- Atrial fibrillation, which is a condition when the heart beats faster and irregularly.
- AV block, which is a condition when the heart beats slower.
- Supraventricular tachycardia, which is a condition when the heart beats too fast.
- Extra systole ventricle, which is a condition when there is another beat outside the
- Ventricular fibrillation, which is a condition when the heart only vibrates.
Arrhythmia Symptoms
Arrhythmias can occur without causing symptoms, so sometimes the sufferer is not aware of it. Symptoms of arrhythmias that can appear include:
- Heart beating faster than normal (tachycardia)
- Heart beating slower than normal (bradycardia)
- Dizzy
- Faint
- Tired quickly
- Hard to breathe
- Chest pain
Please note, someone who experiences the above symptoms does not necessarily experience an arrhythmia. Therefore, an examination by a doctor is needed so that it can be seen what triggers these symptoms.
When to go to the doctor
Have regular health checks with a cardiologist, especially if you have hypertension, thyroid disorders, diabetes, heart disease, or have had heart surgery.
Immediately see a doctor if you often experience chest pain, shortness of breath, and palpitations, especially if these complaints appear suddenly.
If someone falls unconscious after previously complaining of the above symptoms, immediately take him to the emergency room at the nearest hospital.
Reason Arhythm
Arrhythmias occur when the electrical impulses that regulate the heartbeat don't work properly. This condition can be caused by a number of conditions below:
- Take cold medicine or allergy medicine
- Sleep apnea
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Electrolyte disturbances, such as potassium excess or deficiency and hypomagnesaemia
- Thyroid disorders, eg hyperthyroidism
- Heart valve disorders
- Congenital heart disease
- Coronary heart disease
- Heart attack
- Cardiomyopathy
Apart from medical conditions, arrhythmias can also be triggered by an unhealthy lifestyle, such as:
- Can't manage stress well
- Lack of sleep
- Smoke
- Excessive consumption of alcoholic or caffeinated beverages
- Drug abuse
Diagnosis Arhythm
To determine if the patient is suffering from an arrhythmia, the doctor will ask about the symptoms that appear and listen to the patient's heartbeat. After that, the doctor will perform the following examinations:
- Electrocardiogram (EKG), to record the electrical activity of the heart while lying down. In order to record the electrical activity of the heart when the patient is active during the day, the doctor will install a portable EKG device called Holter monitoring on the patient.
- Cardiac exercise test, to measure the activity of the heart when the patient does physical exercise, such as pedaling a stationary bicycle or walking treadmill.
- Cardiac echo, to see the structure and function of the heart. This procedure is performed with the help of sound waves.
Doctors can also run other tests, to see if there is an underlying disease for the arrhythmia, namely:
- Electrolyte level measurement
- Measurement of blood sugar levels
- Imaging
- Cardiac catheterization
- Biopsy
Treatment Arhythm
Arrhythmia treatment aims to treat irregular heart rhythms. The method used depends on the type of heart rhythm disorder experienced, whether it is too fast or too slow.
Methods of treating arrhythmias include:
Omedicine
Medicines that doctors prescribe to treat arrhythmias are antiarrhythmic drugs. Doctors will also prescribe warfarin to reduce the risk of blood clots.
Ablation
Doctors perform cardiac ablation with cardiac catheterization procedures. This procedure is done by placing one or more catheters in the blood vessels leading to the heart. The electrodes located at the end of the catheter will destroy a small piece of tissue in the heart that causes heart rhythm disturbances, so that the heart rhythm returns to normal.
Pacemaker
The doctor will place a pacemaker under the skin, just below the collarbone. The pacemaker functions to return a heart rhythm that is too slow to normal.
ICD
Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) is a small device that is placed in the chest. This device is used in patients who are at risk for sudden cardiac arrest. This implant will detect signs of cardiac arrest and automatically apply electricity to treat it.
Arrhythmia Complications
In some cases, arrhythmias can get worse and lead to serious complications, such as:
- Dementia
- Alzheimer's disease
- stroke
- Heart failure
- Sudden cardiac arrest
- Sudden infant death (SIDS)
Prevention Arhythm
As explained above, many factors cause arrhythmias. Therefore, its prevention depends on the cause of the arrhythmia. In general, arrhythmias can be prevented by maintaining a healthy heart, namely by:
- Quit smoking.
- Eat healthy food.
- Maintain ideal body weight.
- Exercise regularly.
- Limiting consumption of alcoholic beverages and
- Avoid taking medication without a doctor's advice.
People with heart disease need to have regular check-ups with the doctor so that their condition doesn't get worse and cause arrhythmias. Patients also need to take medication regularly as recommended by a doctor, and see a doctor as soon as symptoms worsen.