You’ve probably heard that your heart is a muscle, but did you know it has an electrical system? Your heartbeat is regulated by an electrical conduction system, and it coordinates when each of the chambers of your heart contracts.
At both locations of Pinnacle Healthcare System, our providers offer cardiology services, so we understand how confusing and frightening a diagnosis related to your heart can be. Here, we explain what an arrhythmia is, what causes it, and what you should expect from treatment.
Each heartbeat begins with an electrical stimulus that originates in your sinus node (SA node), which is located in the right upper chamber of your heart. Under normal conditions, your SA node generates an electrical stimulus 60-100 times per minute.
The electrical stimulus travels through conduction pathways, moving from your SA node to the atrioventricular node, or your AV node. As it moves, it causes your heart’s ventricles to contract. Each contraction pumps blood through your heart.
The two upper chambers of your heart, the atria, contract first, and are followed by the two bottom chambers, the ventricles. One heartbeat is a contraction of your ventricles.
When your heart doesn’t beat in the familiar pattern of the two atria contracting, followed a fraction of a second later by the two ventricles contracting, you have an irregular heartbeat, or an arrhythmia.
An arrhythmia can feel like your heart is fluttering or galloping, or as if it’s barely beating. Some people describe a feeling as if their heart is flipping. You also can have an arrhythmia and not feel it at all.
Arrhythmias happen when the electrical signals that begin a heartbeat aren’t quite right. Many different things can cause it.
In some cases, it’s normal for your heartbeat to be unusual. For example, if you’ve been running, it’s normal for your heart to feel like it’s pounding or galloping. Or if you’re resting, your heartbeat slows down.
It can be frustrating to not know the cause of an arrhythmia. Here are some common causes:
Since there’s so much variation in arrhythmias, both in what happens and what causes them, they’re divided into different types:
Although there are times that arrhythmias are normal, in other cases, arrhythmia can be dangerous. Arrhythmia is associated with heart attack, coronary artery disease, and other serious issues.
The best treatment for arrhythmia depends on several different factors, such as why you’re experiencing an irregular heart beat, your overall health, and several others. For example, if you have a thyroid disorder, treating it could resolve your arrhythmia.
Some possible treatments include:
If you have an arrhythmia that requires treatment, you should work with a provider you trust and who offers you a personalized treatment plan. At Pinnacle Healthcare System, we consider your lifestyle, overall health, and goals and preferences when we suggest a treatment approach.
When you understand the cause of your arrhythmia and how we can treat it, you don’t have as much reason to be worried. Schedule your appointment today in our Hollywood or Pembroke Pines, Florida, office today and begin easing your confusion and worry.
