Causes
Atrial fibrillation can have many causes. It is not unusual for several diseases to lead to this cardiac dysrhythmia. Among the most frequent ones:
- High blood pressure
- Heart failure (cardiac insufficiency)
- Coronary heart disease (CHD)
- Heart attack
- Heart valve defect
- Heart muscle diseases
- Heart muscle inflammation
- Hyperthyroidism
- Potassium deficiency
- Alcohol
- Drugs
- Pulmonary Embolism
- Sick Sinus Syndrome
- Stumbling and racing heart
- Shortness of breath and shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Anxiety and fear
- Swindle
- Reduced physical resilience
- Sweating
Whether patients notice their atrial fibrillation depends crucially on their heart rate.
The faster the heart beats per minute (e.g. 120/min), the more likely it is that the first symptoms are felt. Nevertheless, about one third of those affected do not feel any symptoms at all! During the heart action, the atria are no longer able to adequately support the ventricles during contraction.
As a result, the amount of blood transported per heartbeat is also reduced and organs are supplied with relatively less blood and oxygen. As a result, those affected often notice reduced performance, shortness of breath, dizziness, exhaustion or even fainting. Not infrequently, patients also report noticeable “palpitations” or “heart stumbles”.
Sometimes, however, an irregularly palpated pulse on the wrist may be the only indication. Atrial fibrillation describes an irregular heart action, i.e. a cardiac arrhythmia. Normally the heartbeat is regular.
In atrial fibrillation, however, the heart does not beat rhythmically. How many times the heart beats per minute (heart rate) is not defined in atrial fibrillation. There is atrial fibrillation with normal heart rate (normofrequency atrial fibrillation) but also atrial fibrillation with too slow (bradycardic atrial fibrillation or bradyarrhythmia absoluta) or too fast heart rate (tachycardic atrial fibrillation or tachyarrhythmia absoluta).
Atrial fibrillation in particular, which is associated with a heart rate that is too fast, can lead to symptoms such as shortness of breath, anxiety or pressure on the chest. A normofrequent atrial fibrillation is often not even noticed by the patient. and pressure in the thorax – These are the causesAtrial fibrillation means that the heart no longer works as regularly as it should.
Its pumping function decreases as a result. This means that blood can no longer be pumped as effectively in atrial fibrillation as in a healthy heart. The faster the heart beats during atrial fibrillation, the worse its pumping performance becomes.
And the less blood the heart pumps, the worse the oxygen supply to the body. This is why shortness of breath (dyspnoea) occurs mainly in atrial fibrillation, which is associated with a heart rate that is too fast. Depending on the heart rate, patients can no longer breathe properly, suffer from shortness of breath even during medium or light exertion, or even feel a shortage of air at rest.
Atrial fibrillation is widespread. Many patients who suffer from atrial fibrillation do not notice anything. Often it is a random finding in the ECG.
Signs of possible atrial fibrillation are rather unspecific: reduced exercise tolerance, shortness of breath during physical exertion, heart stumbling, chest pain or sudden feelings of anxiety can be indicative. Such symptoms should generally be clarified, as they can also occur in the event of heart failure or a heart attack. If there is a suspicion of atrial fibrillation, the person affected can take his or her pulse.
To do this, he places the tips of the middle and index fingers on the outside of the wrist just below the ball of his thumb on the skin. You should be able to feel a slight throbbing sound. In a healthy heart, the pulse is regular.
Many people have occasional extra beats which can be felt as a drop-out or additional beat. In the case of atrial fibrillation, however, no rhythm is discernible at all, the pulse appears completely irregular. If atrial fibrillation is suspected, the treating family doctor should be consulted. He can write an ECG and, if necessary, initiate further necessary examinations.
