The heart, divided into four chambers, functions to pump blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. Electrical impulses produced by specialized cells in the upper right chamber, known as the right atrium, travel through the upper chambers into the lower chambers, called the ventricles. This triggers the heart to contract. A specific type of arrhythmia, known as a heart block, occurs when damage to the heart slows or interferes with the flow of these impulses. The resulting abnormal heart rhythm interferes with the flow of blood therefore decreasing the amount of oxygen reaching the cells. This causes noticeable heart blockage signs.
Fainting
Every cell in the body needs a continuous supply of oxygen. Therefore, the heart beats approximately 100,000 times a day pumping about 2,000 gallons of blood through the body, according to the Cleveland Clinic. A heart block causes the heart to beat too slowly reducing the amount of oxygen reaching the body. The brain, which controls all the functions of the body, becomes especially susceptible to a lack of oxygen. When the brain fails to receive an adequate supply of oxygenated blood, a loss of consciousness, a condition known as fainting, or syncope, occurs.
Shortness of Breath
The lungs function to intake air and exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide with the blood. Oxygen poor blood returns from the body to the right atrium of the heart through the inferior and superior vena cava. The blood then flows through the tricuspid valve into the right ventricle where it empties into the pulmonary artery to flow into the lungs. Once in the lungs the blood exchanges the carbon dioxide for oxygen and flows back through the pulmonary vein into the left atrium. The blood then flows through the mitral valve, into the left ventricle where it enters the aorta to flow through the body.
The slow heart contractions caused by a heart block reduces the flow of blood into and out of the lungs. This causes shortness of breath---a feeling of not getting enough air; a lower amount of blood means less oxygen for the body to use.
Chest Pain
A heart block can also cause chest pain, a condition doctors refer to as angina. Angina usually occurs when the heart fails to receive enough blood, as described by the American Heart Association. In patients with a heart block, the heart pumps blood slower, which reduces the blood pressure. A low blood pressure causes the blood to flow through the body at a slower rate therefore depriving the heart of an adequate blood supply.
Fatigue
Fatigue, an extreme feeling of tiredness, occurs when the cells throughout the body fail to receive enough oxygen. Because a heart block causes the heart to pump slower, it reduces the volume of blood as well as the amount of oxygen flowing through the body.
