Therapy of Absolute Arrhythmia for cardiac arrhythmia

The therapy of absolute arrhythmia is based on the prognosis and the complications that can arise from this disease. Within this framework, four basic pillars of the therapy of absolute arrhythmia can be defined. The first pillar of therapy includes prophylaxis and is probably the most important for every patient.

Atrial fibrillation causes an irregular flow of blood in the atria, which causes the blood to tend to form clots. These clots can subsequently enter the ventricle and from there be ejected into the body’s circulation. Here they can cause serious damage, such as the occlusion of a vessel that supplies the brain.

This leads to a stroke with severe and sometimes irreversible deficits. For this reason, every patient with atrial fibrillation should receive so-called thromboembolism prophylaxis, which can prevent the formation of blood clots. The second pillar of therapy is frequency control.

This is used when the atrial fibrillation cannot be stopped. However, since the atria move much faster than the normal heart rate in absolute arrhythmia, there is always the risk that the fast rate will be transmitted to the ventricles, resulting in life-threatening tachycardia or even ventricular fibrillation. The third pillar of the therapy contains the rhythm control, here an attempt is made to bring the absolute arrhythmia back into the normal heart rhythm by means of medication or electrical impulses.

The fourth and last pillar of therapy deals with the most common secondary or underlying diseases that can have a significant influence on atrial fibrillation. Here, for example, the correct setting of high blood pressure. – Prophylaxis

Frequency control
Rhythm control
Generalized therapy

Probably the most important therapeutic approach in the treatment of absolute arrhythmia is thromboembolism prophylaxis.

For this purpose, blood-thinning medication is administered permanently. The best known representative of these drugs is the so-called Marcumar®. One of the oldest blood thinners used in the prophylaxis of absolute arrhythmia.

Marcumar® is a very reliable drug which, when blood levels are correctly adjusted, significantly reduces the risk of a stroke due to a blood clot. Unfortunately, Marcumar® is metabolized very individually, which makes regular blood checks necessary for correct dose setting. Compared to new blood-thinning drugs which do not require regular blood checks, Marcumar® remains a good alternative because it is a very well tested drug which is still superior to many new drugs in terms of controllability and tolerability.

Cardioversion is a therapeutic approach that serves to control the rhythm of atrial fibrillation. Cardioversion can either be performed electrically or with medication. In electrical cardioversion, an electrical impulse is given to the sleeping patient, which is coordinated with the action of the heart and is intended to bring the heart rhythm back to normal.

An alternative is the drug-induced cardioversion. In this case, special drugs are administered under control of the heart action, which are also intended to end the rhythm disturbance and bring the atria back into the normal heart rhythm. Similar topics that might interest you: Ventricular flutter and fibrillation.