General information
Almost everyone knows tachycardia: you can feel how the heart beats inside you, it beats and throbs and you can feel the pulse clearly up to the carotid artery. In stressful situations, in excitement, anticipation or heavy physical strain, tachycardia is a normal reaction of the body and passes after a short time. At rest, our heart pumps between 70 and 100 milliliters of blood per heartbeat into the body’s circulation in an adult man (for women this amount is slightly less). If the body is stressed, for example by sports, there is a higher oxygen demand in the body and consequently a higher demand for blood. Since the amount of blood that is pumped out of the heart per cycle cannot be increased in large quantities, the body increases the rate at which it pumps the blood into the circulation, i.e. the heartbeat.
When is tachycardia normal and when not?
Tachycardia in pregnancy can occur at any time and is more common between the 28th and 32nd week of pregnancy. Particularly in resting phases, increased palpitations up to tachycardia are noticeable. Although the exact causes of occasional palpitations have not yet been clarified – a hormonal connection is suspected – in most cases this is not to be considered pathological.
If the tachycardia occurs very frequently and is accompanied by a heart stumbling and irregularities, advice should be sought from a doctor. It is possible that a cardiac arrhythmia is the cause. Tachycardia can also be associated with hyperthyroidism and then occur together with a so-called goiter on the neck. This is an abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland tissue. If the tachycardia is accompanied by other symptoms, such as paleness, hair loss, muscle cramps, etc., it may be a lack of electrolytes.
Doctor’s visit necessary?
A visit to a doctor is not absolutely necessary for uncomplicated tachycardia. Even a drug therapy is out of the question with these symptoms. The best thing to do in this case is to give the body time and rest to get used to the new situation and adapt.
However, if the heart beats irregularly, “stumbles” or if a cardiac dysrhythmia is known, it should be clarified by the doctor with the help of an ECG. Even if a thyroid disease is known, a tachycardia during pregnancy should be clarified by a doctor as a precautionary measure. Tachycardia is also in need of clarification and treatment if, in addition to the heart rate, the blood pressure also increases significantly.
In this case, a doctor should be consulted urgently and a therapy started. Symptoms of high blood pressure are headaches or a feeling of pressure in the head, visual disturbances, dizziness and nausea. In some cases, increased urine excretion (polyuria) may occur due to the increased vascular pressure.
All articles in this series:
