my daughter was diagnosed w/ Sinus Rhythm w/ blocked Premature Atrial Complexes...?

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can anyone give me more information on what this actually means...our daughter explained it to us...but i was so out of the loop cuz of the shock that i dont recall half of what info he gave us. please inform. thank you in advance.
sorry...meant to say our DOCTOR explained it to us.
Attn: Robbert Hobbemeister

Our daughter is 5 yrs old, and we first became aware of this when we noticed a slight difference in her heart beat.
I wish we could ask a question, and then answer again, but here goes -

I'm guessing the doctor said she had a sinus rhythm with non-conducting PACs - that means that her sinus node in her heart is firing off an electric charge before it should, by a matter of 10ths of a second. But, it is just an electrical discharge, the heart is not actually beating. Which is good, because that means the atria is getting enough time to fully fill before it pumps the blood down to the ventrical. 30% of the heart's pumping power comes from filling up before it pumps, like a rubber band shoots farther is you stretch it more (starling's reflex, if you care for the name).

The premature discharge could be from an irritated spot on her heart, or a node that is misfiring. Depending on what happens with it and why will change the treatment. She could just be put on a medication to block that initial discharge. They could go in with a wire and burn off the spot that is irritated if it is a part of the heart. They may have to close a pathway if the electrical signal is coming from the ventricals backwards up to the atria.

This is the part where questions would help. Did you hear Wolfe-Parkinson's White? How old is she? How did they find out - was she sick and they did a test, or was it an incidental finding?

That's at least a very brief idea - please don't be afraid to ask the doctor lots and lots of questions - if they don't want to answer, find another doctor. It always amazes me that people don't question the MD - it is your medical care, your body. Learn as much as you can from them, never leave with a question, and never take a medication without knowing what it is and why you are (or she is ) taking it.




OK - then you noticed an irregularity. Her heart should beat 100x a minute, at a regular clip, you noticed little gaps - that means her heart discharged too early, but did not pump, and so it missed a beat. Carefully review the paperwork from the doctor, including discharge instructions. Make the appointment with the specialist if they set one up. Look online for info on the diagnosis the pediatrician thinks it might be, and have lots of questions for the cardiologist. Most importantly, don't freak out prematurely. If she behaves normally, she is doing well now. Just follow the steps as they are laid out to you.

Good luck.  (+ info)

How dangerous are premature atrial contractions if they happen 15-20 times a day?

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I've been diagnosed as having PAC's (premature atrial contractions). I've been told by my doctor that they're harmless, and I ignored them when they were only happening a couple of times a day. They are now becoming more frequent though.. more like 15-20 times a day and it's starting to worry me. Should I be concerned? Thank you.
PACs are harmless and very common. I have thousands of PVCs (premature ventricular contraction) daily. You should go to your cardiologist and get your heart checked out to make sure there's no underlying cause for your PACs. If everything's normal, you have nothing to worry about.

Triggers for my PVCs are caffeine, alcohol, and stress. Reduce or eliminate your caffeine and alcohol intake will definitely help.  (+ info)

Should I be worried about Atrial premature contractions.?

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Hello,

Was just wondering if you have to worry about my husband having Atrial premature contractions?

Thanks
He has been to the doctors and they said it was this - it was because he was having shortness of breath and slighty dizziness. He drinks coffee (around 3-4 cups a day) and is a non smoker!
Everyone has palpitations, some are premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) , some are atrial ventricular contractions (PACs). Both are considered benign. Caffeine and tobacco use can make them occur more often. They shouldn't be anything to be worried about unless there are other things going on such as sustained arrhythmias, dizziness, chest pain, shortness of breath. Then it's time to see the doctor. Hope this helps.  (+ info)

Premature atrial contractions with lightheadedness?

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I am just now getting over H1N1 flu, and I am experiencing Premature atrial contractions (the feeling that you are skipping a beat once in a while). I read that this is harmless, but since it is accompanied with dizziness I would like some help from you out there to figure out if its anything more. Each time I feel the "missed beat" I feel unable to take a breath and very dizzy, but it only lasts a moment. Once it passes, I just have mild dizziness. Any thoughts?
keep an eye on it ,you may need to take medication ,atrial fibrillation leads to bigger problems ,the causes could be a valve is starting to deteriorate ,but with proper diagnosis could be remedied  (+ info)

What is premature atrial contractions and is it serious?

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I was just told that I have this condition following an EKG I had done. I'm only 24 years old and it scared me. I would like to know how serious it is and how likely it is for me to have blood clots and have a stroke (like I was told is very possible).
I should preface this (as I do in all of my medical entries) by saying I'm not a doctor yet, so anything I say here is purely subjective (so I don't get my ass sued off for some cockamamie reason)

That said:

No it's not serious. What is it...well, it's a little like a sparkplug that fires before the gas is in the chamber. I'm actually surprised your physician didn't explain it to you when you were in the room, but all the same, it's not the first time I've read where someone didn't get a condition explained to them...

Normal sinus rhythm (as you probably know) is the good ol' "lub-dub" right? A Premature Atrial Contraction aka PAC aka irregular heartbeat aka premature heartbeat aka arrhythmia is caused when the upper two chambers of the heart fire off before the "lub" of the lower two begins, a little like right before the conductor brings the stick down, the horn section starts playing before everyone else (better than the car analogy, yes?)

But this is where it really twists: We have no idea what really causes it. We have conjectures, and ideas, and theories, but nothing solid that we can point to as being the difinitive cause. It is believed that certain kinds of bacteria or a viral sickness you might have suffered in the past, caused the cells within the atria to become damaged and lose their way in the music, a little like that horn section mentioned above.

Normally, such things go away on their own...the body is such a magical machine, I assure you if you know this is going on cognatively, your body has know about it for a while and is working to fix it. There are cases (I should caution) that in time become much more serious, and I would say that over time it behooves you to keep the little murmer under watch...till then carry around a stethescope and share your cool little trick with your science-driven friends, they will surely get a kick out of it (they are quite interesting to listen to, if you think about it).

I wish you good health, and I submit my answer for review and comment to my higher ups (pgy3 and up, interns, fellows and physicians).

- jmb  (+ info)

Could anger, anxiety, or stress increase the occurrences of pre-atrial complexes?

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I get PACs once in a while, but my cardiologists found nothing wrong with my heart. When I get stressed out or argue with someone, I sometimes get them.

Thanks.
  (+ info)

EKG- sinus bradyacadia with occasioal premature atrial complxes???PLEASE EXPLAINS?

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Im 25 years old...got a ecg dont at the bottom it says otherwise normal

but before that it says sinus braycadia with occasional premature atrial complexes and it also says early pepoloraztion..
is that healty
should i follow up with another doctore

i dont have any medical promblems..should i just drink less cafine and and achool to make it go down
  (+ info)

EKG: can you have an atrial fibrillation with a premature ventricular complex (pvc)?

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can you have an atrial fibrillation with a premature ventricular complex (pvc)?
How certain are you that it was a PVC? Yes it can occurr but frequently in atrial fibrillation it could be aberrant ventricular conduction.Aberrant ventricular conduction occurs when a supraventricular impulse reaches the His-Purkinje system when one of the bundle branches (BB) is in the absolute refractory period resulting in slow or blocked conduction through the BB and delayed repolarization through the ventricular muscles causing a BBB (wide Qrs) on the surface ecg in the absence of bundle branch block (BBB) pathology. A right BBB pattern is more common than left BBB. If there is a change in QRS cycle length it is called Ashmans phenonemen. There is a long cycle followed by a short cycle and the beat with the short cycle has a RBBB morphology which causes alot of diagnostic confusion. There is a sudden lengthening of the QRS cycle the subsequent impulse with a shorter cycle or even normal cycle length may be conducted aberrantly . In short aberrant venricular is an abnormal conduction of a supraventricular impulse resulting in a wide QRS complex that can be missed diagnosed as a PVC, but PVC's can occur in atrial fibrillation, you just need to know how to interpret the ecg correctly, clear as mud??? take care, Donna  (+ info)

define MAT(multifocal atrial tachycardia) including ECG findings.What is Atrial premature contraction?

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DEfine Multifocal Atrial tachycardia&atrial premature contraction.Explain ECG findings(both of them) in simpleway.
Multifocal atrial tachycardia (MAT) is an irregular cardiac rhythm caused by at least 2 different sites of competing atrial activity.
ECG findings showan irregular rapid tachycardia, usually narrow-complex.
It is often confused with atrial flutter or fibrillation.
It usually does not cause hemodynamic instability

It is usually caused by hypoxia in the elderly with other resp. conditions. It usually resolves itself once the hypoxia is corrected.

Hope this helps.

A premature atrial contraction means that the impulse to cause the beat started somewhere in the right atrium of the heart, but not in the SA node. It may have a smaller PRI interval on the ECG and will come earlier in the cardiac cycle.  (+ info)

How to naturally treat Premature Atrial Contractions?

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The most common cause of PACs among healthy persons is ingestion of caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol or exposure to stress. PACs are found more frequently among persons with heart disease such as ischemia (decreased blood flow to the heart muscle) or congestive heart failure (decreased pumping efficiency of the heart). Persons with heart disease are more likely to have PACs convert to atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter (two types of atrial arrhythmias). Chronic pulmonary disease may make PACs more frequent, as can electrolyte (salts in the blood) disturbances.

Treatment
Healthy persons with no symptoms of heart or lung disease need no specific treatment. The condition may resolve on its own or may be less frequent if one cuts down on caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, and stress. Persons with PACs can exercise safely and need no special dietary changes other than reductions in alcohol and caffeine. PACs may be controlled with antiarrhythmic medications, but the main goal is to manage evident heart or lung disease.

The DOs
1) Reduce your intake of caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine and your exposure to stress, especially if you have heart or lung disease.

The DON'Ts
1) Do not neglect therapy for heart or lung disease.

When to Call Your Doctor
1) If you have palpitations (rapid heartbeat), chest pain, shortness of breath, or fainting.  (+ info)

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