Arrhythmia; Irregular heartbeat
An arrhythmia describes an irregular heartbeat – the heart may beat too fast, too slowly, too early, or irregularly.
Arrhythmias occur when the electrical signals to the heart that coordinate heartbeats are not working properly. For instance, some people experience irregular heartbeats, which may feel like a racing heart or fluttering.
Many heart arrhythmias are harmless; however, if they are particularly abnormal, or result from a weak or damaged heart, arrhythmias can cause serious and even potentially fatal symptoms.
Fast facts on arrhythmias: Some arrhythmias have no associated symptoms. Symptoms of arrhythmia often include dizziness, breathlessness, and palpitations.
The causes of arrhythmia are varied and include diabetes, mental stress, and smoking.
Arrhythmias are broken down into:
*Slow heartbeat: bradycardia.
* Fast heartbeat: tachycardia.
*Irregular heartbeat: flutter or fibrillation. Early heartbeat: premature contraction.
Most arrhythmias are not serious, but some can predispose the individual to stroke or cardiac arrest.
Causes of arrhythmia?
Any interruption to the electrical impulses that cause the heart to contract can result in arrhythmia.
For a person with a healthy heart, they should have a heart rate of between 60-100 beats per minute when resting.
The more fit a person is, the lower their resting heart rate.
Olympic athletes, for example, will usually have a resting heart rate of under 60 beats per minute because their hearts are very efficient.
A number of factors can cause the heart to work incorrectly, they include: Alcohol abuse, diabetes, drug abuse, excessive coffee consumption, heart disease like congestive heart failure, hypertension (high blood pressure), hyperthyroidism (an overactive thyroid gland), mental stress, scarring of the heart, often the result of a heart attack, smoking, some dietary supplements, some herbal treatments,some medications and structural changes of the heart.
A healthy person will hardly ever suffer from long-term arrhythmia unless they have an external trigger, such as drug abuse or an electric shock. If there is an underlying problem, however, the electrical impulses may not be able to travel through the heart correctly, increasing the likelihood of arrhythmia.