Where does tachycardia come from and when is it dangerous?

This is a condition in which the resting heart rate exceeds 100 beats per minute.

Tachycardia may be temporary. For example, as a reaction to stress, physical activity or caffeine consumption. In this case, you don’t have to worry . The heart beats faster to supply more blood to the organs.

But sometimes an increased heart rate is a warning that emergency medical attention is needed.

What are the symptoms of tachycardia?

The condition can be determined by a rapid pulse and several other signs :

• chest pain;
• weaknesses;
• dizziness;
• shortness of breath;
• fatigue;
• nausea .

Call an ambulance if you or someone nearby has symptoms of tachycardia that do not go away for more than 30 minutes.

If a person faints, immediately call 103 or 112 and begin CPR yourself.

Loss of consciousness may indicate ventricular fibrillation , a life-threatening condition.

Some people show no signs of tachycardia at all. In this case, the condition can be detected only if you measure your heart rate with a doctor or yourself.

What to do if a person nearby has tachycardia

Tachycardia can cause fibrillation – irregular and frequent heartbeats. Because of this, the pressure drops, the person loses consciousness , soon his pulse disappears and breathing stops.

If this happens before your eyes, you need to start cardiopulmonary resuscitation as soon as possible. This will help maintain blood flow to the organs until doctors arrive. Here’s what to do:

1. First of all, call an ambulance at 103 or 112 or ask others around you to do so.
2. Check the person’s breathing and pulse.
3. Gently tilt the victim’s head back.
4. Place the heel of your palm just below the center of your sternum (the bone to which the ribs are attached). Place your other palm on top and interlock your fingers. Straighten your elbows and keep your shoulders directly above your hands.
5. Apply pressure to this area at a rate of 100–120 times per minute. You can focus on the rhythm of the Bee Gees song – Stayin’ Alive. The area should bend by 5–6 cm. After every 30 compressions, you need to take two breaths mouth to mouth to the victim. If you are not sure that you can take breaths so that air enters the person’s lungs, it is better to skip this step and focus only on chest compressions.
6. Resuscitation must continue until specialists arrive. The main task is to maintain blood flow until it is possible to use a defibrillator. Ask others to look for an automatic device: many public places have them. You don’t need to specially learn how to use it: it gives voice commands that you will carry out.

Take note✍

• How to do artificial respiration and chest compressions

What are the types of tachycardia?

Depending on the cause, there are three types .

1. Sinus tachycardia

This is a normal rapid heartbeat . Arises as a physiological reaction to some condition. The cause may be physical activity, stress, pain, infection, thyroid disease , pulmonary embolism, or chronic heart failure.

2. Supraventricular tachycardia

This type of tachycardia is more common in young, otherwise healthy people. Abnormal heartbeat may occur in episodes that begin and end completely suddenly. Between attacks there are often no signs of tachycardia.

Although the disorder causes unpleasant symptoms, such as weakness and dizziness, it almost never poses a significant risk to life. But it is worth remembering: if episodes occur frequently and last a long time, this is dangerous.

3. Ventricular tachycardia

This type includes two more: ventricular tachycardia itself and ventricular fibrillation, which we have already mentioned. The second condition is the most dangerous. With it, the ventricles do not contract, but tremble. If the rhythm is not restored within a few minutes by cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the person will die.

Most often, the condition occurs in older people with serious diseases: coronary heart disease and heart failure.

Why is tachycardia dangerous?

Because the heart beats too fast, it does not have time to fill with blood between beats. This can lead to the fact that not all cells in the body receive the necessary substances, including oxygen.

Complications of tachycardia depend on the type of tachycardia, how fast the heart beats, how long the condition lasts, and whether the person has other heart conditions. Potential consequences include :

• frequent fainting;
• blood clot formation ;
• heart attack and stroke;
• heart failure;
• sudden death.

Why does tachycardia occur?

Physiological tachycardia is caused by the body’s reaction to stress, fear, anxiety, tension during exercise, and high body temperature. It can also occur due to lack of sleep.

The causes of pathological tachycardia – that which develops against the background of diseases or other abnormal conditions – include :

• heat;
• anemia;
• taking certain medications or abruptly stopping them;
• use of stimulants, including illegal ones (cocaine, methamphetamine);
• smoking;
• excessive alcohol consumption;
• ​​alcohol withdrawal ;
• electrolyte imbalance;
• high or low blood pressure;
• problems with the thyroid gland;
• heart attack;
• chronic heart disease.

What to do if you suspect you have tachycardia

In simpler cases, you need to make an appointment with a cardiologist as soon as possible . The specialist will conduct an examination and prescribe examinations . This:

• An electrocardiogramis a test that measures heart rate.
• Echocardiography, or cardiac ultrasound, helps check how blood flows through the heart and heart valves.
• Holter study, in which a special device is installed in a medical institution and a person is allowed to go about his business. In a day you need to return to the hospital, where the device will be removed and data will be obtained from it about how the heart works.
• Stress testshelp measure your heart rate while walking on a treadmill or pedaling an exercise bike.
• Computed tomography of the heartis a study during which a series of images are taken, resulting in a three-dimensional image of the heart and its structures.

If inflammation, anemia or hyperthyroidism is suspected, blood and urine tests may be needed .

How to treat tachycardia

When tachycardia occurs after jogging or a stressful situation, it does not need to be treated. It goes away on its own as soon as the factor that caused it disappears.

If the trigger is excluded, but the rapid heartbeat remains, you need to return it to normal values ​​as quickly as possible and prevent new attacks.

Restore normal heart rhythm

Sometimes normal rhythm can be restored using special techniques taught by the doctor. This:

• Carotid sinus massage: The point where the carotid artery divides into two branches can be stimulated through the skin.
• The Valsalva maneuver is when you inhale through your nose, close your nostrils and begin to exhale through your nose.
• Using the immersion reflex: if you put your face in cold water, your heartbeat will reflexively slow down.

Activities such as coughing, straining as if having a bowel movement , or placing an ice pack on your face also help .

If these techniques don’t work, the problem may be getting serious. In this case, you need to call an ambulance: the doctor will give you medicine and, if necessary, hospitalize you. In the hospital, they can perform cardioversion – a procedure in which a current is supplied through electrodes on the chest to restore the rhythm. It is used when other methods do not give the desired effect.

Eliminate the cause of the disease

This may be necessary when a high heart rate is caused by a medical condition . Here’s how they work in different cases:

• Tachycardia associated with fever is treated with antipyretic drugs such as paracetamol or ibuprofen. When a high fever is caused by a bacterial infection , antibiotics may be needed.
• Sometimes tachycardia occurs due to hyperthyroidism, a disease that causes the thyroid gland to produce too many hormones. In this case, treatment will require antithyroid drugs, radioactive iodine, or removal of part of the thyroid gland.
• If the tachycardia is caused by a blood clot in the lungs, treatment involves taking medications that dissolve the clot.

Prevent new attacks

To prevent tachycardia from occurring, the doctor will recommend :

• medications that help control heart rhythm;
• an operation during which the surgeon makes small scars on the heart to eliminate excessive stimulation;
• a pacemaker, which senses an irregular heartbeat and sends an electrical impulse to correct the heart rhythm;
• installing a defibrillator under the skin next to the collarbone – it will supply electricity when an attack of tachycardia begins.

Maintain Heart Health

To do this, you need to undergo regular examinations with a doctor and, if you already have any disease, follow the treatment plan. And of course, a healthy lifestyle will help:

• Watch your weight. You can focus on the body mass index – it should be less than 25. To calculate it, you need to divide your weight by your height squared.
• Eat healthy. Doctors believethat the best diet for the heart is Mediterranean .
• Add physical activity. Getat least 150 minutes of moderate activity, such as walking, swimming or cycling, per week . But before you start exercising, consult your doctor: some exercise may cause or worsen the symptoms of tachycardia.
• Fight bad habits. Reduce your alcohol and caffeineintake , smoke less, and quit drugs.
• Adjust your sleep schedule. You need to sleep 7–9 hours a day in a quiet, dark, ventilated room.
• Try to be less nervous. And to cope with stress, you can use special strategies : try not to close yourself off from problems, but realize them, reconsider your attitude towards exciting things, discuss them with loved ones.