Cardiac Arrhythmia??!


Question: Cardiac Arrhythmia.?.?
Occasionally I have a flutter type feeling in my chest. I know it's my heart and some sort of arrhythmia. It only ever lasts a few seconds, but during those seconds it feels awful. I get dizzy and feel like I can't breathe. I wouldn't worry about it, but it's happened 4-5 times in the last 2 weeks.

Could it be serious.? Like a-fib.? Or is it totally benign.? How would I know.?

I feel a little silly asking this. I'm in pharmacy school and have been through all the cardio stuff. So I should (theoretically) know what I'm talking about. I just feel like if I went to see a doctor, they wouldn't find anything because it's not happening all the time. Otherwise, I'm a perfectly healthy 24 year old female.

Thanks for the help!Health Question & Answer


Answers:
Being dizzy and not being able to breath sound like good reasons to have this further investigated...after all, what happens if you have one of these attacks at exactly the wrong time, like while driving.? Or what happens if the next attack is slightly longer and you pass out.?

You might be having short runs of supra-ventricular tachycardia. Theoretically afib is possible but not very likely in a young person's, healthy heart. Alternatively these attacks might even be tiny panic attacks. I could speculate all day long but getting it checked out will tell with more certainty.


Most doctors would probably check out things like your thyroid, a baseline ECG, electrolytes, etc. If all normal then there are cardiac event monitors that you wear around for several days. You press a button when you have an event. This marks the spot and electrical tracing will be saved so it can be analyzed later. It has two main advantages in that the monitor is in place for some time, giving the event an opportunity to happen. You actually mark the event so the physician can correlate the ECG with your physical experience.

Going to school and having experience in the field are quite different things (talk to a 1st year intern who has "MD" after their name but knows very little about actually taking care of a patient); so don't expect to be able to diagnose yourself too well, even if you have some relevant classes under your belt. A little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

I hope this helps. Good luck.Health Question & Answer



The consumer health information on youqa.cn is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions.
The answer content post by the user, if contains the copyright content please contact us, we will immediately remove it.
Copyright © 2007-2012 YouQA.cn -   Terms of Use -   Contact us

Health Q&A Resources