The cause of the rapid heartbeat may be accidental and does not mean a serious disorder, unless the attacks are repeated and the severity of the attacks increases, and is accompanied by other serious symptoms. In addition to an explanation of the causes of serious heart tachycardia.
Symptoms of heart palpitations
Rapid heart palpitations occur when a person is active or at rest, and those who suffer from rapid heart palpitations may feel the following:
- Rapid heartbeat.
- Feeling the heart beating in the rib cage.
- Confusion and a feeling that the heart is in the throat, neck or chest.
Cause of rapid heart palpitations
The types of heart palpitations are not harmful, and they can disappear without treatment, but in some cases, a rapid heart palpitations can indicate a serious condition, and a careful examination is required to distinguish between a benign rapid pulse and a dangerous secret pulse, and among the causes of rapid heart palpitations:
- Strenuous exercise.
- Excessive caffeine or alcohol intake.
- Excessive nicotine intake from tobacco products such as cigarettes.
- Pressure nervous.
- anxiety or fear
- Lack of sleep.
- Panic.
- Drought.
- Hormonal changes during pregnancy.
- Low blood sugar.
- Anemia or blood loss, or low levels of oxygen or carbon dioxide in the blood.
- Hyperactivity of the thyroid gland.
- Shock.
- fever.
- Complications of medicines that do not require a prescription, such as cough medicines or nutritional supplements.
- Prescription medications such as decongestants and asthma sprays.
- Arrhythmia.
- Heart valve disorders.
- Sleep Apnea.
Causes of constant heart palpitations
Rapid heart palpitations may continue for a period of time, and may recur due to the recurrence of factors leading to it:
- Stress and anxiety: Intense emotions cause the release of hormones that increase the speed of the heartbeat; Because the body is preparing to face the threat, even if the injured person is not in danger, and these seizures last for a few minutes.
- Playing sports: When exercising, the heart beats more quickly; To be able to pump more blood to the muscles, especially when you stop exercising for a while, or play while going through a sick condition.
- Caffeine: Caffeine is a stimulant that raises the heart rate. In any form, be it coffee, chocolate, energy drinks, or soda, it is unlikely to cause a rapid heartbeat in people who are otherwise healthy.
- nicotine Nicotine speeds up the heart rate and raises blood pressure while smoking, even 3 to 4 weeks after quitting.
- Hormonal changes: Women notice that the heartbeat accelerates during the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, or near menopause, and this is due to disturbed hormone levels.
- fever: During a fever, the body uses energy at a faster rate than usual, and this can lead to rapid palpitations.
- pharmaceutical: Some prescription or over-the-counter medications can cause rapid heart palpitations as a side effect, such as antibiotics, antipsychotics, high blood pressure medications, and thyroid pills.
Heart palpitations damage
If the rapid heart palpitations are not due to a heart disorder, then the risk that it causes is small, but if it is due to heart disorders, then it leads to the following complications:
- brain attack: Cerebral stroke occurs because of the rapid heartbeat if the palpitations are due to the fibrillation of the upper two chambers of the heart; Because the blood may accumulate, and form clots, and when it crumbles, it blocks one of the brain arteries.
- Cardiac arrest Rarely, a rapid heartbeat is due to a problem with the heart system, which means life threatening, and cardiac arrest may mean that it is not pumping effectively.
- Fainting: When the heartbeat accelerates, the pressure can drop, leading to fainting, and fainting usually occurs due to a number of valve problems, or due to congenital heart disease.
- heart failure It occurs when the heart does not pump blood effectively for a long time, due to any of the arrhythmias.
Heart palpitations treatment
The treatment of heart palpitations depends on treating its cause, and in many cases, it disappears on its own, and if it does not disappear on its own, the doctor resorts to lifestyle changes, or to medical treatments such as:
- Anti-arrhythmic drugs, such as beta-blockers, or non-dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker therapy, which slow the heart rate.
- Blood pressure lowering medications.
- If the medications aren’t working as well as they should, the doctor may prescribe a different antiarrhythmic drug, such as one that directly targets the sodium or potassium channels in the heart.
In cases of severe heart palpitations, treatment is as follows:
- catheter ablation; To correct how electrical impulses travel through the heart.
- synchronized electrical cardioversion, which is the delivery of one or more electric shocks to the chest wall; To try to reach a normal pulse rate.
- Installing a pacemaker, or implantable defibrillator, which is a special type of permanent heart device that treats and monitors heart electrical abnormalities.
Treating a fast heartbeat at home
Rapid heartbeat can be controlled without resorting to surgery or medication, by the following:
- Determine the stimuli of a rapid pulse, such as sports activities, food and drinks.
- Control stress and nervousness, through deep breathing exercises or relaxation exercises.
- Limit caffeine intake and avoid energy drinks.
- Quit smoking, other tobacco products, or other alcohol products.
- Finding alternatives to anticonvulsants.
- Exercising regularly.
- Commitment to a healthy diet.
- Try to keep blood pressure and cholesterol levels under control.
When is heart palpitations dangerous?
There is no need to worry about the rapid heartbeat that occurs only from time to time, but it is useful to monitor the heartbeat and keep track of the times it occurs. To make an accurate diagnosis in the event that the situation worsens, and the rapid heartbeat is dangerous if it is accompanied by the following:
- Unconsciousness.
- pain in chest.
- Pain in the upper part of the body.
- Dizziness.
- shortness of breath.
- unusual sweating
- nausea.
A rapid heartbeat is a sign of a serious illness, if it is due to:
- Atrial fibrillation: The heart’s upper chambers (atria) quiver irregularly instead of beating at a regular pace.
- Ventricular tachycardia: It is a rare and serious type of tachycardia that causes the lower heart rate to beat very quickly.
The cause of rapid heart palpitations may be caffeine or exercise, and it is usually not dangerous unless it is repeated or accompanied by fever or fainting. Treatment is with medication or surgery.