Cardioversion is a procedure your healthcare provider uses to put your heart back into a normal rhythm. They can use a device or medicine to change your heart rhythm. A cardioversion can save your life if you're having a ventricular arrhythmia that could lead to a sudden cardiac arrest.
Cardioversion is a medical procedure that uses quick, low-energy shocks to restore a regular heart rhythm. It's a treatment for certain types of irregular heartbeats (arrhythmias), including atrial fibrillation (A-fib).
Treatment with medication (pharmacological cardioversion) or controlled electric shocks (electrical cardioversion) can often restore a normal heart rhythm. Afterwards, medication is typically used in order to try to prevent the heart rhythm from becoming irregular again.
Yes, heart arrhythmias sometimes go away on their own. But if you notice any of the things mentioned above that go along with your arrhythmia, you should get it checked out as soon as possible.
Exercise regularly
Exercise can improve overall cardiovascular health and help restore the heart's natural rhythm. It can also help reduce stress and anxiety. Cardiovascular exercise helps strengthen the heart, which can prevent or reduce palpitations.
Common triggers for an arrhythmia are viral illnesses, alcohol, tobacco, changes in posture, exercise, drinks containing caffeine, certain over-the-counter and prescribed medicines, and illegal recreational drugs.
DON'T go overboard on alcohol
Alcohol is similar to caffeine — some people with irregular heartbeats can tolerate it, while others cannot. Erica tells patients, “Limit your alcoholic drinks to one to two per night, and drink even less if your arrhythmia is caused by a weakened heart or previous heart attack.”
In general, the consensus seems to be that sleeping on your left side is better for most people. It may reduce GERD and sleep apnea more than sleeping on your right side. The only exception is that people with congestive heart failure or heart palpitations might benefit from sleeping on their right sides.
While medications are used to control abnormal heart rhythms, ablation procedures can cure some types of arrhythmia completely. Once treated, whether through ablation or ongoing medications, most patients with a heart rhythm issue can return to their normal activity levels.
Some kinds of heart arrhythmias are harmless. Others can be serious or potentially life-threatening if left untreated, as was the case with Danish soccer player Christian Eriksen, who suffered a cardiac arrest on the field during a match in the summer of 2021.
People who do feel symptoms report fluttering in the chest or a feeling that their heart has skipped. Premature beats can occur in anyone, most often happen naturally, and don't require treatment. But they also can happen as a result of heart disease, stress, overexercising, or too much caffeine or nicotine.
Why Magnesium May Help Your Heart Palpitations. Magnesium plays a big role in keeping your heart pumping at a regular pace. Deficiencies are common and can lead to palpitations. But getting more magnesium in your diet is easy.
Sleep position: People who sleep on their backs or on their left sides are more likely to have heart palpitations. Sleeping on the left side, in particular, may increase awareness of heart sensations, as it shortens the distance between the heart and the chest wall.
Your sleeping position could be part of the problem if you have paroxysmal AFib. One study found that people who slept on their left sides reported more symptoms. This position may put more stress on your heart. What you eat and drink – and when – can affect your sleep with AFib.
Most of the time, heart palpitations at night aren't harmful. But it's important to see your provider to be sure they aren't signs of a serious health problem. Get help right away if you have heart palpitations and: Chest pain or discomfort.
Heart arrhythmia treatment may include medications, catheter procedures, implanted devices or surgery to control or eliminate fast, slow or irregular heartbeats. A heart-healthy lifestyle can help prevent heart damage that can trigger certain heart arrhythmias.
There are 4 main types of medicines for treating irregular heartbeats: sodium channel blockers like flecainide. beta blockers like propranolol and atenolol. potassium blockers like sotalol and amiodarone.
Low calcium levels, or hypocalcemia (which can be secondary to low vitamin D levels), can cause irregular heartbeat.
firmly place the index and middle finger of your right hand on your left wrist, at the base of the thumb (between the wrist and the tendon attached to the thumb) using the second hand on a clock or watch, count the number of beats for 30 seconds, and then double that number to get your heart rate in beats per minute.
Heart arrhythmias are caused by electrical problems. Sometimes, it's just a single skipped beat, but arrhythmias can last minutes, hours, days and possibly years. Occasionally, the heart's electrical signals get caught in a little short-circuit loop.
A recommended dosage is 600 mg-800 mg/day. (For example, 200 mg three times a day and 200 mg at bedtime.)
A "fluttering" in their chest. A "skipped beat." A "pounding sensation." A feeling that the heart is "jumping out of my chest."
Interestingly, not only does stress increase the frequency of cardiac arrhythmias but also the lethality of ventricular arrhythmias [7]. So focussing on prevention or treatment of stress, anger, and depression could be paramount to the electrophysiologists' management of their patients.