When deciding what type of blood thinner is best, the question of Eliquis versus Warfarin often arises. Blood thinners, also called anticoagulants, are a class of medications that “thin” or prolong the time it takes for your blood to form a blood clot. Simply put, blood thinners stop blood clots. The usefulness of blood thinners […]
Heart Flutter
Heart flutter is a nonspecific term often used by people when describing an abnormal sensation in their chest that may refer to one of several conditions which may be benign or may be concerning, including premature ventricular contractions (PVCs), premature atrial contractions (PACs), heart block, atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, ventricular tachycardia, POTS, or muscle spasms in […]
Vasovagal Syncope – What You Need To Know
If you have ever seen someone faint, you will know it can be a scary experience, especially as often it can happen out of the blue for no apparent reason, leading to a lot of anxiety for those around. So what is it that causes people to faint? Well there is actually a medical name […]
Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia
The normal heartbeat is generated just like clockwork by electric signals sent out from a natural pacemaker known as the sinus node. Normal individuals have heart rates of between 60-90 beats per minute. This is actually slower than the natural pacemaker of the heart, partly because there is the slowing influence of the nervous system […]
Sinus Arrhythmia – What Is It?
What is Sinus Arrhythmia? What is sinus arrhythmia? Heartbeats are like clockwork. In the same way the second hand on a clock ticks regularly each second, the heart has an electrical impulse that is generated and leads to a heartbeat in a regular manner. The timing between each of these generated impulses is known as […]
PVC Heart Beats – Are They Dangerous?
PVC’s are common. Some people are troubled by just a few PVC’s where as others may have a PVC heart beat almost every other beat and not even notice it. Apart from being annoying to some (symptoms are sometimes described as heart flutter), are they of long-term significance? In this article we will look at […]
Afib with RVR – When The Heart Races Out Of Control
What Is Afib with RVR? Afib with RVR refers to atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate. Usually the heart is like clockwork, the top (collecting) chambers beat then the bottom (main pumping) chambers sense this and also beat, and so on, in a nice regular fashion just like a clock ticking second after second. Usually […]
Atrial Fibrillation – Part 2 – Blood thinners
By Julian Booker MD Although we identify only four chambers with a normal human heart, the left atrium has a small finger-like pouch attachment most commonly called the appendage. Blood flow within the appendage can be slower than the rest of the left atrium. Although many cardiologists would argue, the left atrial appendage does have […]
Atrial Fibrillation – Part 1 – What is it?
Atrial fibrillation, sometimes called a-fib, is the commonest cardiac arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythm). In contrast to the metronome-like heart rhythm that we are used to, atrial fibrillation is characterized by an irregularly irregular heartbeat. If you were to check your pulse, there would be no pattern. The timing of your heartbeat would almost seem random. […]