Cardiac Arrhythmias

Operating without interrupting warfarin reduces risk of bleeding after cardiac device surgery

A new Canadian study shows that operating without interrupting warfarin treatment at the time of cardiac device surgery is safe and markedly reduces the incidence of clinically significant hematomas compared to the current ...

Cardiology created May 09, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Wireless pacemaker shows promise in early study

(HealthDay)—Scientists report positive results in early testing of a wireless pacemaker that's placed in the heart instead of being connected to it via wires from the upper chest.

Cardiology created May 09, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Minimally invasive VATS-LCSD helps children with refractory ventricular arrhythmias

Inherited ventricular arrhythmias are an important cause of morbidity and sudden cardiac death in children who have structurally normal hearts. Despite conventional medical therapy, some of these children remain symptomatic ...

Cardiology created May 07, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

New study finds digoxin safe despite recent reports

A study published today in the European Heart Journal found no evidence that digoxin increases mortality in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), the opposite of results just published by another group in the same journa ...

Cardiology created Apr 16, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Scientists identify first potentially effective therapy for human prion disease

Human diseases caused by misfolded proteins known as prions are some of most rare yet terrifying on the planet—incurable with disturbing symptoms that include dementia, personality shifts, hallucinations ...

Medical research created Apr 03, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Tests to predict heart problems may be more useful predictor of memory loss than dementia tests

Risk prediction tools that estimate future risk of heart disease and stroke may be more useful predictors of future decline in cognitive abilities, or memory and thinking, than a dementia risk score, according to a new study ...

Neuroscience created Apr 01, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

'Clinical trials in a dish' may be more reliable than standard way of measuring drug effects on heart, researchers say

(Medical Xpress)—Last week, the common antibiotic Zithromax received a new warning label from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration indicating it could cause dangerous arrhythmias in people with pre-existing heart conditions. ...

Medical research created Mar 22, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study finds that maternal vitamin D levels in pregnancy do not affect children's bone health

A study of nearly 4,000 pairs of mothers and their children in the Children of the '90s study at the University of Bristol has shown that maternal vitamin D levels during pregnancy are not associated with the child's bone ...

Health created Mar 18, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Outside the box: Team uses brain aneurysm treatment to stop irregular heart rhythms

For the first time, a UCLA team has used a technique normally employed in treating brain aneurysms to treat severe, life-threatening irregular heart rhythms in two patients.

Cardiology created Mar 14, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Cause of heart arrhythmia discovered using X-rays at CLS

Using powerful X-rays at the Canadian Light Source synchrotron, scientists have reconstructed the scenario of heart arrhythmia in action, making critical progress towards preventing deadly conditions and saving lives.

Medical research created Feb 22, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0

Doctors fail to communicate impact of heart devices with patients, study finds

New research at Saint Louis University shows physicians do not talk to patients about the psychosocial impact and long-term risks of implanting cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) to treat irregular heart rhythms, leaving ...

Cardiology created Feb 19, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Compound developed by scientists protects heart cells during and after attack

Using two different compounds they developed, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have been able to show in animal models that inhibiting a specific enzyme protects heart cells and ...

Cardiology created Feb 07, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Calcium-binding protein mutations found in heart rhythm disorders

A team led by Vanderbilt University investigators has discovered two new genes – both coding for the signaling protein calmodulin – associated with severe early-onset disorders of heart rhythm. The findings, reported ...

Cardiology created Feb 06, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Diabetic fruit flies support buzz about dietary sugar dangers

Regularly consuming sucrose—the type of sugar found in many sweetened beverages—increases a person's risk of heart disease. In a study published January 10 in the journal PLOS Genetics, researchers at San ...

Genetics created Jan 17, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

New discovery in autism-related disorder reveals key mechanism in brain development and disease

A new finding in neuroscience for the first time points to a developmental mechanism linking the disease-causing mutation in an autism-related disorder, Timothy syndrome, and observed defects in brain wiring, according to ...

Neuroscience created Jan 14, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (2) | comments 1 | with audio podcast


Cardiac dysrhythmia (also known as arrhythmia and irregular heartbeat) is any of a large and heterogeneous group of conditions in which there is abnormal electrical activity in the heart. The heart beat may be too fast or too slow, and may be regular or irregular.

Some arrhythmias are life-threatening medical emergencies that can result in cardiac arrest. Others cause symptoms such as an abnormal awareness of heart beat (palpitations), and may be merely annoying. These palpitations have also been known to be caused by atrial/ventricular fibrillation, wire faults, and other technical or mechanical issues in cardiac pacemakers/defibrillators. Still others may not be associated with any symptoms at all, but may predispose the patient to potentially life threatening stroke or embolism.

Some arrhythmias are very minor and can be regarded as normal variants. In fact, most people will on occasion feel their heart skip a beat, or give an occasional extra strong beat; neither of these is usually a cause for alarm.

Proarrhythmia is a new or more frequent occurrence of pre-existing arrhythmias, paradoxically precipitated by antiarrhythmic therapy, which means it is a side effect associated with the administration of some existing antiarrhythmic drugs, as well as drugs for other indications. In other words, it is a tendency of antiarrhythmic drugs to facilitate emergence of new arrhythmias.

The term sinus arrhythmia refers to a normal phenomenon of mild acceleration and slowing of the heart rate that occurs with breathing in and out. It is usually quite pronounced in children, and steadily decreases with age. This can also be present during meditation breathing exercises that involve deep inhaling and breath holding patterns.

This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

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