An arrhythmia is a change in the regular beat of the heart. The heart may seem to skip a beat, beat irregularly, very quickly or very slowly. Many arrhythmias cause no symptoms and may go unnoticed, however they may lead to palpatations ' a feeling of fluttering in the chest. Occasionally, arrhythmia can cause sudden death.
There are three main causes of arrhythmias: • The sinoatrial node (SAN) misfires, making the heart beat too fast or too slow. • Another part of the heart takes over the job of the SAN. • There is an interruption to the normal conduction of nerve signals in the heart. This may be caused by a heart attack that has damaged the heart muscle. Everyone experiences some variation in their heartbeat at certain times and palpatations can be normal. If there is a co-existing heart disease, then it is this and not the arrhythmia that poses the greatest risk to the patient. However, in a very s...
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