Atrial fibrillation (A fib) is an abnormal heart rhythm, can be intermittent or chronic and affects about 4 percent of people over the age of 65. The most common causes are hypertensive heart disease, heart attack, heart valve disease and chronic...
The heart is a complex organ that requires carefully coordinated electrical currents in order to beat properly. Atrial fibrillation is a type of cardiac arrythmmia that can cause serious health problems. Some vitamins, such as vitamins C and E,...
Events caused by sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation, two disorders that share many of the same risk factors and symptoms, can wake you up to a pounding heart. Unless you have an emotional condition, such as anxiety, your increased pulse rate may...
Atrial fibrillation represents one of the most common forms of arrhythmia or irregular heartbeat. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, atrial fibrillation occurs when the electrical signals that govern heart rate and rhythm...
On average, the normal resting heartbeat of an adult is between 60 and 100 beats per minute. Any change in the usual rhythm and rate of the heartbeat is considered an arrhythmia. Different types of arrhythmias have different signs to be aware of.
Caffeine is a nervous system stimulant and a diuretic that can cause atrial fibrillation and other problems when you consume excessive amounts. Caffeine overdose also may cause confusion, breathing problems and vomiting. Caffeine is found...
A flutter or cough sensation in the chest is medically referred to as an atrial fibrillation, which is a type of heart rhythm disorder known as an arrhythmia. An atrial fibrillation results in poor blood flow to the rest of the body, and while the...
The heart, the hardest-working muscle in the body, pumps blood through the veins to ensure that nutrients and oxygen reach all areas in the body. A variety of cardiac complications may occur when the heart stops functioning as it should....
Heart rate is controlled by electrical impulses that are sent across the tissues of the heart. A normal adult heart rate is 60 to 100 beats per minute, at rest, according to MayoClinic.com. A rapid heart rate, also called tachycardia, is when the...
Your heart is an incredibly dynamic organ. Capable of recognizing and responding to changes in your behavior and physical activity, a healthy heart can adjust its function to meet most demands placed upon it. As we age, damage to your heart lead...
Inconsistent heart rate is a condition that occurs when you experience dropped or additional beats in your normal heart rate. The causes of this type of inconsistency belong to a class of ailments called arrhythmias. While some occurrences of...
Heart palpitations are defined by MayoClinic.com as rapid, fluttering or pounding heartbeats. During a heart palpitation, the heart is beating abnormally, but adequate amounts of blood are still being pumped effectively. Although the abnormal...
Atrial fibrillation is a condition in which nerve impulses that regulate heart rate become irregular and cause a disorganized heart rhythm in the atria -- the upper chambers of the heart. This condition occurs in 3 to 5 percent of people over age...
Abnormalities in your heart rhythms are called arrhythmias; your heart beats too slowly, too fast or in an erratic cadence. Your heart should beat somewhere between 60 and 80 times per minute. When it doesn't, you can face serious consequences....
Atrial fibrillation is a type of arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, that occurs when the heart's two upper chambers--the left and right atria--beat erratically and out of sync with its two lower chambers--the left and right ventricle. The...
Atrial fibrillation, or A-fib, is a condition that affects the regularity of your heartbeat. During atrial fibrillation, the upper chambers of your heart, known as the atria, beat out of sync with the lower chambers, known as the ventricles....
Heart function depends on the maintenance of a regular rhythm. When the heart rhythm is irregular, the heart is unable to pump adequate amounts of blood to meet oxygen demands in the body. Vitamin D is needed for calcium absorption. Since heart...
The body needs the mineral potassium to regulate muscle contraction. The heart, being a muscle, often responds to changes in potassium levels by developing irregular heartbeat or arrhythmia. Normally, potassium levels in the blood range from 3.5...
Too much calcium in your body is termed hypercalcemia. Calcium plays many roles inside your body, including promoting bone health and nervous and cardiovascular system functioning. Each of calcium's functions becomes disturbed if your body has an...
According to the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Physicians, atrial fibrillation is the most common form of arrhythmia, or abnormal heart rate, in adults. Furthermore, according to the Centers for Disease Control...
Educate yourself about the physical symptoms that may accompany atrial fibrillation. Not everyone who has this type of rapid, irregular heartbeat shows outward symptoms of the disorder. People who do feel something abnormal going on with their...
Your body needs coenzyme Q10 to fuel cell function. CoQ10 has been studied for its effects on chronic conditions including cancer, high blood pressure and heart disorders. It may improve your overall heart health, though it may not necessarily...
Digoxin is also known as lanoxin and belongs to a class of cardiovascular drugs known as cardiac glycosides. According to the National Institutes of Health, digoxin is used to treat mild to moderate heart failure and atrial fibrillation
Receptors called beta adrenergic receptors are found in the heart and the muscle that lines lungs, blood vessels and organs. Activation of these receptors by a hormone called epinephrine causes the arteries to contract and the heart to beat faster...
Heart palpitations, including the feeling that your heart has skipped a beat, may startle you, but are not necessarily serious. They have a variety of causes and one possible source of skipped beats is chocolate, or more specifically, some of the...
A pacemaker is a life-saving device that can help individuals with heart conditions or defects live long, productive lives. Having a pacemaker, though, means that some of your activities will be limited. You must avoid contact sports and some...
An arrhythmia is a change in your heartbeat's rhythm that may feel like a racing, slow or irregular heartbeat. Arrhythmias usually aren't serious and are oftentimes caused by stress, caffeine or alcohol. However, an arrhythmia can be dangerous if...
According to MayoClinic.com, 40 percent of deaths are related to heart disease each year in the United States. Heart rate monitors are simple, inexpensive tools that may catch life-threatening arrythmias, or malfunctions in heart rhythm. Dependent...
Digoxin is a prescribed medication used to treat congestive heart failure (CHF) and atrial fibrillation, or an irregular heartbeat. CHF is a condition in which the heart becomes enlarged and unable to effectively pump blood to the body. Atrial...
