Tachycardia
Overview
Risk Factors
Things that raise the risk of tachycardia are:
-
Heart problems, such as:
- A prior heart attack
- Cardiomyopathy—heart muscle disease
- Myocardial ischemia—poor blood flow to the heart
- Electrolyte problems—too much or too little calcium, sodium, magnesium, and potassium in the blood
- Hypoxemia—not enough oxygen in the blood
- Acidosis—too much acid in the body’s fluids
SymptomsandDiagnosis
Symptoms
Symptoms of tachycardia are:
- Pounding heartbeats
- Fast heartbeats
- Lightheadedness or fainting
- Chest pain
- Problems breathing
Diagnosis
Your doctor will ask about symptoms and past health. A physical exam will be done.
Tachycardia is usually diagnosed with an electrocardiogram (ECG). Patches are placed on the chest, arms, and legs—to check heart activity.
Other tests may be:
- Holter monitor—a device worn to measure heart activity over 24 to 48 hours
- Exercise test—to see if symptoms happen during physical activity
- Electrophysiology study—wires placed inside the heart to see where the abnormal rhythm starts
- Cardiac catheterization—a tube put through a blood vessel to check blood flow to the heart
Treatments
Treatment
The goal is to slow the fast heartbeats and prevent them from happening again. This includes treating any conditions that are causing the fast heartbeats.
Fast heartbeats that are life-threatening need care right away.
Care options may be:
- Medicines to:
- Slow the heartbeats
- Prevent blood clots
- Lower blood pressure
- Treat other underlying conditions
- Ablation—destroying some heart tissue with cold or heat, to block abnormal signals
- Cardioversion—an electric shock to reset the heart, which is used for:
- Life-threatening rhythms—ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation
- Milder rhythm problems such as atrial fibrillation
- An implantable cardiac device (ICD)—put under the skin to check heart activity and shock abnormal rhythms
Device to Correct Tachycardia |
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Edits to original content made by Denver Health.
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