Having a hiccup in your heart rhythm can be uncomfortable – as well as frightening. But when does an extra heartbeat or other unexpected feeling warrant a visit to your doctor?
John Hummel, MD, a heart rhythm specialist at the Richard M. Ross Heart Hospital, sheds some light on irregular heart rhythms, which are fairly common.
“It can be tempting to jump to the worst-case scenario when it comes to your heart, and to think that an irregular heartbeat is a sign of a serious disease,” says Dr. Hummel. “But it doesn't always require treatment.”
The possible causes of an irregular heartbeat can vary widely – from too much caffeine to a more potentially dangerous condition of having your blood pressure skyrocket or plummet.
There are several types of irregular heartbeats. Dr. Hummel explains some people experience an extra heartbeat, a skipped beat, too fast of a beat (called tachycardia) or too slow of a beat (called bradycardia).
It is said to be regularly irregular. A heart with atrial fibrillation where the atrium beats about 400 to 600 times per minute but electrical impulses reach the ventricle say 100 times per minute at random times makes the ventricle beat irregularly, at unpredictable moments. This arrythmia is said to be irregularly irregular. Overview An irregular heartbeat is called an arrhythmia. A sinus arrhythmia is an irregular heartbeat that’s either too fast or too slow. One type of sinus arrhythmia, called respiratory sinus. Regularly irregular pulse Pulsus bigeminus is caused by a ventricular ectopic occurring after every normal beat. Second degree heart block is the other cause of regularly irregular pulse. The possible causes of an irregular heartbeat can vary widely – from too much caffeine to a more potentially dangerous condition of having your blood pressure skyrocket or plummet. There are several types of irregular heartbeats.
When to see a doctor immediately?
Dr. Hummel says it can be difficult for most people to know if an irregular heartbeat is a sign of something more serious.
Go immediately if you have additional symptoms with your irregular heartbeat or you’ve had a heart attack or other heart stress. According to Dr. Hummel, those symptoms include fainting, dizziness, chest pain, swelling in your leg or shortness of breath.
“There’s a big difference between sitting in a chair and noticing your heart skipping and having fluttering that makes you feel like I’m going to pass out,” says Dr. Hummel.
“The other issue is whether your heart is structurally normal. If it’s not, abnormal heart rhythms more commonly will increase your risk of stroke or sudden death.”
Look at your actions and environment
Dr. Hummel says external factors could be causing disruptions in your heart rhythm:
- Too much caffeine or alcohol
- Dehydration
- Drug abuse
- Fever
- Anemia
- Emotional distress
- Sleep apnea
- Pregnancy
- Eating or exercising
Dr. Hummel advises you make notes of when you experience irregular heartbeats and share this information with your doctor. Remember, not all unusual heart rhythms will require treatment. 'Abnormal heartbeats can come and go, especially in young people,” states Dr. Hummel.
What type of tests can help diagnose an irregular heartbeat?
The first test is usually an echocardiogram, which looks at the structure and function of your heart. You may have an exercise stress test on a treadmill or stationary bike to measure your heart’s response to exertion. Patients might also be asked to wear a portable monitoring device (called a Holter monitor) for 24 to 48 hours that records every heartbeat and monitors for irregular heart rhythm.
“We have a wide range of diagnostic tools and we work to figure out what the cause is by looking at your actions and your medical history,” explains Dr. Hummel. He points out some people may have an inherited abnormal heart rhythm. Learn more about genetic heart testing.
The bottom line on your irregular heartbeat
Regular Vs Irregular Heart Rhythm
- If you have skipped heartbeats, you need to pay attention to your body and then get an assessment.
- The urgency of that assessment is determined by whether you have additional symptoms or structural heart disease.
« Qi Flow |Main| Needle Gauges »
Regularly Irregular Pulse Found In
Regularly Irregular Pulse
Pulse Quality Chart
| Pulse | Description | Meaning |
| Choppy | Pulse is uneven and rough. Classically defined as a knife scraping bamboo. | Blood deficiency or blood stagnation |
| Deep | Pulse has most strength at lowest level and requires deep pressure to feel well. | Internal organ deficiency |
| Fast | Pulse is greater than 80 beats per mintue. | Heat, either excess or deficient |
| Full | Pulse can be felt strongly on all three levels (superficial, middle and deep). | Heat, excess or both. |
| Hurried | Irregularly irregular and fast. Pulse seems to miss a beat with no apparent pattern. | Internal heat causing recklessness of blood, condition is deep and serious. |
| Intermittent | Regularly irregular. Pulse seems to miss a beat with a definite pattern. | Heart organ disharmony or exhaustion of the organs |
| Knotted | Irregularly irregular and slow. Pulse seems to miss a beat with no apparent pattern. | Cold obstructing the flow of qi and blood. |
| Short | Pulse doesn't seem to fill all three positions (front, middle, rear). | Qi deficiency or congenital problem. |
| Slippery | Pulse feels like pearls coursing through the pulse, with a definitive rolling quality. The pulse quickly hits each individual finger and just as quickly rolls away. | Dampness of any variety, phlegm, pregnancy. |
| Slow | Pulse is less than 60 beats per minute. | Cold in the interior, or severe qi deficiency |
| Superficial | Pulse has most strength at upper-most level, and can be felt with only a slight touch. | External pathogen (OPI) or Yin deficiency |
| Thin | Exactly what it says. Pulse simply feels thinner than it should. | Blood or qi deficiency. |
| Tight | Pulse feels taught like a rope, thicker than wiry, feels as if the pulse evenly hits the fingers in different places with every beat. | Cold, usually causing stagnation. |
| Weak | Strength of the pulse is minimal, and with more pressure cannot be felt at all. | Qi deficiency |
| Wiry | Pulse feels like a thin rope that bounds up against the fingers evenly but with force. | Qi stagnation, especially in Liver, can also be phlegm |