Heart Rhythm Problems Explained

In this video we will cover heart rhythm problems, what symptoms they can cause, when to contact your doctor and much, much, more. So make sure to watch the whole video so you don’t miss any important information.

This video is part of a videoseries on cardiovascular diseases and treatments. Find the playlists here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaG3Bo3L0gX4RW4KCNLMonBoVENz-SKM_

How does your heart work?
Your heart is a muscle, which pumps blood through your body with every contraction. It consists out of 4 chambers with heart valves. The upper chambers are called atria. It is their function to fill the lower chambers, called ventricles. Your ventricles pump the blood through your body.
Normally every heart contraction is initiated by the sinus node. Which consists out of specific cells that send the electrical signals that make your heart beat. From there the electrical signal travels to the Atrioventricular (AV) node, which carries the signals from your heart’s upper chambers to its lower ones. This ultimately causes your ventricles to contract and pump out blood.

What is a heart rhythm problem?
If the electrical signals that coordinate your heart’s beat malfunctions, it may cause your heart to beat too fast (tachycardia), too slow (bradycardia) or irregularly. In medical terms this is called heart arrhythmia.

Tachycardia:
This would require a resting heart rate greater than 100 beats a minute. This type includes:
- Atrial fibrillation; where the atria beat chaotically and irregularly, out of sync with the lower chambers. Usually this comes and goes, without causing complication.
- Ventricular fibrillation; here, disorganized heart signals cause the ventricles to twitch uselessly. As a result, the heart doesn't pump blood to the rest of the body. This of course is an emergency which requires immediate medical attention.

Bradycardia:
Technically a heart rate below 60 beats a minute while at rest is considered bradycardia, but a low resting heart beat doesn’t always signal a problem.
- Sick sinus syndrome; here the sinus node does not work properly and the heart rate starts to alternate between too slow and too fast. This can be caused by scarring near the sinus node, which might disrupt its electrical impulses.
Conduction block; this is a blockage in you heart’s electrical pathways which lead to a slow heart rate.

How is arrhythmia caused?
In general there are a several underlying conditions which can contribute to the formation of a heart rhythm disorder: a heart attack, blocked arteries, diabetes, high blood pressure, an infection with COVID19, thyroid problems, sleep apnea, certain prescription drugs, drinking too much alcohol or caffeine, drug abuse, smoking an excess amounts of anxiety.

How can you prevent heart rhythm problems or decrease them?
This all starts with an healthy lifestyle; So stop smoking, limit your alcohol consumption, exercise at least 150 minutes each week, consume a balanced diet (with low levels of saturated fat, salt and sugar. Eat plenty of fibers, fruit and vegetables), maintain an healthy weight, have a structured sleeping schedule (7-9 hours of sleep each night) and decrease stress (by maintaining social contacts, doing fun activities and relaxing).

However, in some cases changing your lifestyle will only get you so far. Your doctor might recommend several medications or therapies to help you. Your doctor might prescribe you:
- Antiarrhythmic drugs.
- Beta blockers.
- Anticoagulant.

If long term oral medication is insufficient and your rhythm problems persist, than your doctor might recommend cardioversion, an ablation, pacemaker or Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD).

- Disclaimer: this video and the comments are meant purely informational! This is not medical advice! If you are looking for medical advice always contact your own doctor. -

I want to give special thanks to my sponsors on Patreon:
- Sebastian Houwing: Investor

Literature:
1: Mayo Clinic Staff. (2022). Heart arrhythmia. Mayo Clinic.
2: Cleveland Clinic. (2021). Heart.
3: Healthline. (2019). A Guide to Drugs for Arrhythmia.

* The images in this video are used for educational purposes only. Most of the images and video material in this video come from https://www.canva.com/.

Follow me on instagram: @HOWTOMEDICATE
Follow me on twitter: @HOWTOMEDICATE
Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/howtomedicate

Видео Heart Rhythm Problems Explained канала HOW TO MEDICATE