Cardiology and Arrhythmia Consultants PC
Procedures
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Pacemakers Pacemakers
Pacemakers are battery-powered implantable
devices that function to electrically stimulate the heart to
contract and pump blood throughout the body at the proper
rate.
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Biventricular Pacemaker/ICDs
Biventricular Pacemakers
A Biventricular Pacemaker/ICDs is a type of
implantable pacemaker designed to treat a specific heart
condition in which both the left and right sides of the heart
are out of sync. Whereas pacemakers are used to pace only the
right side of the heart a biventricular device paces both the
right and left sides of the heart simultaneously.
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Electrophysiologic Studies
Electrophysiologic Studies
Electrophysiologic studies are used
to determine the part of the heart that is causing the
abnormal rhythm, and which treatments might work best to
return that rhythm to normal by evaluating the heart's
electrical conduction system under in a controlled environment.
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Catheter Ablation Catheter
Ablation
Catheter Ablations are a treatment to selectively
destroy "short circuits" within the heart that cause abnormal
rhythms.
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Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator
(ICD) Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD)
An Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator, or
ICD, connects to leads positioned inside the heart. These
leads are used to deliver controlled electrical shocks to
reset the heart should its rhythm become so abnormal as to be
life threatening.
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ElectrocardiogramElectrocardiogram
The Electrocardiogram or ECG is a recording of the small
electric waves being generated during heart activity.
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Stress testing including nuclearStress testing including nuclear
A stress test, sometimes called a treadmill test or exercise test, helps a doctor find out how well your heart handles work. As your body works harder during the test, it requires more oxygen, so the heart must pump more blood. The test can show if the blood supply is reduced in the arteries that supply the heart. It also helps doctors know the kind and level of exercise appropriate for a patient.
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EchocardiogramEchocardiogram
An Echocardiogram uses sound waves to create moving
pictures of the heart so doctors can see how it is functioning.
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Holter MonitoringHolter Monitoring
Holter monitoring provides a continuous recording
of heart rhythm during normal activity. The monitor is usually
worn for 24 hours to obtain a recording of a complete day.
Conditions
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Atrial Fibrillation Atrial
Fibrillation
Atrial Fibrillation is a condition in which the
upper part of your heart beats (quivers) faster than the rest
of your heart, which may present itself as an uncomfortable
flutter in your chest, your heart pounding against your ribs,
an irregular or rapid pulse, lightheadedness or shortness of
breath.
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TachycardiaTachycardia
An arrhythmia is a change in the rhythm of
your heartbeat. When the heart beats too fast, it's called
tachycardia. When it beats too slow, it's called bradycardia.
An arrhythmia can also mean that your heart beats irregularly
(skips a beat or has an extra beat).
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BradycardiaBradycardia
An arrhythmia is a change in the rhythm of your
heartbeat. When the heart beats too fast, it's called
tachycardia. When it beats too slow, it's called bradycardia.
An arrhythmia can also mean that your heart beats irregularly
(skips a beat or has an extra beat).
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Syncope (fainting) Syncope
Syncope is a temporary loss of
consciousness and posture, described as "fainting" or
"passing out." It's usually related to temporary insufficient
blood flow to the brain and often occurs when the the heart
doesn't pump a normal supply of oxygen to the brain or blood
pressure is too low.
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Sudden Cardiac DeathSudden Cardiac
Death
Also known as ventricular
fibrillation (VF) is a very fast, chaotic heart rate in the
lower chambers of the heart, resulting from multiple areas of
the ventricles attempting to control the heart's
rhythm.
Privacy Policy
Also known as ventricular
fibrillation (VF) is a very fast, chaotic heart rate in the
lower chambers of the heart, resulting from multiple areas of
the ventricles attempting to control the heart's
rhythm.
Sudden Cardiac Death is NOT a heart attack
Sudden cardiac death, also
called cardiac arrest, is not the same as a heart attack. A
heart attack as it is commonly used, means there is death of
some of the muscle cells of the heart as a result of a lack of
supply of oxygen and other nutrients. This lack of supply is
caused by closure of the artery that supplies that particular
part of the heart muscle with blood. Sudden cardiac death
happens when the heart abruptly and without warning starts
beating very rapidly and erratically.
An analogy would be if the heart were compared to a house, sudden cardiac death occurs when there is an electrical problem and a heart attack happens when the problem is the plumbing.
Sudden cardiac death is a leading cause of death in the United States, responsible for half of all heart disease deaths.
Sudden cardiac death occurs when the heart's electrical system malfunctions. It is not a heart attack, but can occur in association with a heart attack.
What causes sudden cardiac death?
| Sudden Cardiac Death links |
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American Heart
Association - SCD National Center for Early Defibrillation Emedicine.com - SCD Heart Rhythm Society |
When ventricular fibrillation occurs, the electrical signals that control the pumping of the heart suddenly become rapid and chaotic, causing the lower chambers of the heart (the ventricles) to "quiver" or "fibrillate" instead of contract. This means the heart no longer effectively pumps blood to the rest of the body. Without blood, the brain becomes starved of oxygen and the person loses consciousness.
If ventricular fibrillation is severe enough, it can cause death.
Who Is At Risk?
Sudden cardiac death can occur in people with no known heart disease or other problems that appear outwardly healthy, but it is not a random event. Most people at risk of sudden cardiac arrest do have heart diseases or other health problems, although they may not know it.
A number of problems increase the risk of having a cardiac arrest, including:
- having suffered a previous heart attack — Seventy-five percent of people who die of Sudden Cardiac Death show signs of a previous heart attack;
- coronary artery disease — Eighty percent of Sudden Cardiac Death victims have signs of coronary artery disease, a condition in which the arteries that supply blood to the heart are narrowed or blocked; or,
- heart failure from other causes.
To identify people at high risk for Sudden Cardiac Death, an electrophysiologist will perform any of a number of special tests, including echocardiograms, electrocardiogram, holter monitoring, event recorders, and electrophysiology studies.
Signs and symptoms that may indicate a person is at increased risk for Sudden Cardiac Death include:
- an abnormal heart rate or rhythm (arrhythmia) of unknown cause;
- episodes of fainting (called syncope) of unknown cause; and
- a low ejection fraction — The ejection fraction is a measurement of how much blood is pumped by the ventricles with each heart beat. A healthy heart pumps 55 percent or more of its blood with each beat. People at highest risk for Sudden Cardiac Death have ejection fractions of less than 40 percent, combined with ventricular tachycardia, an abnormally fast heart rate in the lower chambers of the heart.
Prevention
Since a heart attack can damage the heart's electrical system, decreasing the risk of heart attacks also decreases the risk of Sudden Cardiac Death. So, living a "heart healthy" life can help reduce the chances of dying of cardiac arrest or other heart conditions. This includes exercising regularly, eating healthful foods, maintaining a reasonable weight and avoiding smoking.
Treating and monitoring diseases and conditions that can contribute to heart problems, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, is also important.
Finally, for some patients, preventing Sudden Cardiac Death means controlling or stopping the abnormal heart rhythms that may trigger ventricular fibrillation.
Treatment
After testing, an electrophysiologist may recommend one of three options:
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Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs)
An Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator is a small device about the size of a pager that is implanted under the skin in the chest. It monitors the heart and if it detects abnormal beating it delivers a small shock that restores the normal rhythm.
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Medications
Once the main treatment for the control of abnormal heart rhythms, medications like ACE inhibitors, beta blockers and calcium channel blockers are now used more to augment other treatments. Taking medications alone has not proven to be very effective in preventing Sudden Cardiac Death caused by abnormal hearhythmstms, and are more commonly used to reduce how often implantable cardioverter defibrillators are activated.
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Catheter Ablation
Following tests, an electrophysiologist may be able to determine if a certain part of the heart is the cause of the quivers that lead to sudden cardiac death. If so, the electrophysiologist may decide that the best option is to use heat or cold to destroy the small areas of heart muscle that cause the abnormal electrical signals that cause rapid or irregular heart rhythms. The heat or cold is delivered through catheters that are snaked through the veins or arteries to the heart. Ablation can decrease the frequency of abnormal heart rhythms, and as with medications, may reduce how often the device fires.