Palpitations - when they become a concern?

Most of the time, stress or anxiety is one of the main factors in the occurrence of palpitations. They can also occur because of excessive consumption of caffeine, alcohol,. Sometimes, however, they also occur on the background of heart disease - in such situations, palpitations can be the cause of serious or even serious rhythm disorders. It is therefore extremely important for patients experiencing palpitations to go to the doctor for investigations, especially if palpitations are followed by dizziness or chest pain. • Strong emotions such as fear, stress • Caffeine, nicotine, alcohol • Intense physical activity • Anemia, fever • Hypoglycemia • Pregnancy. When palpitations occur in the context of heart disease, they are most often the expression of a heart rhythm disorder.

Only in rare cases are palpitations a sign of disease - either hyperthyroidism or osteoarthritis. Arrhythmia can mean too fast beating, that is, tachycardia, too rare beating, or irregular beats, that is, atrial fibrillation. The most important investigation that patients with palpitations have to carry out is the (electrocardiogram) that will first determine the cause of the disease. At the same time, the ECG will determine the type of heart rhythm disorder. There are also situations when, in order to determine the cause of the palpitations, the patient will perform other investigations such as blood count, thyroid activity or radiological examinations.

The treatment of palpitations will be recommended depending on the substrate, but also the disease that has produced them. Adopting a balanced lifestyle, avoiding alcohol consumption and administering sedative and anxiolytic drugs are needed in case of palpitations without a pathologic cardiac substrate. Treatment of patients with palpitations due to cardiovascular disease will be determined depending on the condition and the type of rhythm disturbance that has produced them. The treatment may be a pharmacological one consisting of antiarrhythmic administration, but sometimes it may be indicated to implant some or certain percutaneous or surgical myocardial revascularization. .