Bradycardia

Bradycardia

It is defined as the slow heartbeat. Normal heart beat is between 60 to 100. Heart beat slower than 60 termed as bradycardia.

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms include:

• Shortness of breath
• Fatigue
• Dizziness
• Fainting
• Chest pain
• Confusion

Causes

Below mention are the causes of bradycardia:

• Inflammatory disease like rheumatic fever
• Heart attack
• Heart tissue damage
• Heart surgery
• Infection of heart tissue

Complications

If left untreated it may cause following complications:

• Cardiac arrest
• Heart failure
• Fainting spells

Diagnosis

After taking history your doctor might recommend the following test to evaluate the cause:

• ECG to check the electrical activity of the heart.
• Tilt table test to check the change in heart rate by changing the position of the body.
• Exercise test to check the change in heart rate by giving stress.
• Blood test to check the complete count of blood cells.

Treatment

Treatment depend upon the severity of the signs and symptoms. There are certain medications strength the heart muscles and fast the heartbeat. Surgical procedure includes change the pacemaker of the heart.