Arrhythmia - Living With - Living With
If you have been diagnosed and treated for arrhythmia, make sure to follow your treatment plan. Your ongoing care may focus on reducing the chance that you will have another episode or a complication. Keep your regular appointments with your doctor. Ask about heart-healthy lifestyle changes that you can make to keep your arrhythmia from happening again or getting worse.
Receive routine follow-up care
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Arrhythmia - Living With
How often you need to see your doctor for follow-up care will depend on your symptoms and treatment.
- Get regular vaccinations, including a flu shot every year.
- Follow your doctor's recommendations for adopting lifelong lifestyle changes, such as heart-healthy eating, being physically active, quitting smoking, managing stress, and aiming for a healthy weight. Your doctor may also recommend that you reduce or stop drinking alcohol and consuming coffee, tea, soda, chocolate, or other sources of caffeine, to avoid triggering arrhythmia.
- Keep all of your medical appointments. Bring a list of all the medicines you take to every doctor and emergency room visit. This will help your doctors know exactly what medicines you are taking, which can help prevent medicine errors.
- See your doctor for regular checkups if you are taking blood-thinning medicines. Your doctor may recommend blood thinners to prevent stroke, even if your heart rhythm has returned to normal. You may need routine blood tests to check how the medicines are working or the effect they are having on your organs.
- Take your medicines as prescribed. Your doctor may also ask you to check your pulse regularly to monitor the effectiveness of the medicines.
- Tell your doctor if you have side effects from your medicines, such as depression, light-headedness, or palpitations. Some of the medicines can cause low blood pressure or a slow heart rate or can make heart failure worse.
- Tell your doctor if your symptoms are getting worse or if you have new symptoms. Over time, arrhythmias can become more common, last longer, or get worse. This can sometimes make arrhythmia resistant to medicines. Some arrhythmias can also make it more likely for other types of arrhythmia to develop.
Return to Treatment to review possible treatment options for arrhythmia.
Monitor your condition
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Arrhythmia - Living With
To monitor your condition, your doctor may recommend the following tests.
- Blood tests to check the effects of medicines you are taking
- Echocardiography (echo) to check your heart function if you have underlying heart disease
- EKGs to monitor changes in heart rhythm
- Holter or event monitors to record your heart’s electrical activity over several days
- Smartphone-based monitors to record heart rhythms and detect when atrial fibrillation occurs. A band that can record a 30-second EKG has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Learn the warning signs of serious complications and have a plan
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Arrhythmia - Living With
Arrhythmia can lead to serious complications, such as sudden cardiac arrest and severe bleeding in the brain. If you suspect any of the following in yourself or someone else, call 9-1-1 immediately:
- Bleeding in the brain or digestive system. If you take too high a dose of blood-thinning medicines, it may cause bleeding in the brain or digestive system. Signs and symptoms may include bright red vomit; bright red blood in your stool or black, tarry stools; severe pain in the abdomen or head; sudden, severe changes in your vision or ability to move your arms or legs; or memory loss. A lot of bleeding after a fall or injury or easy bruising or bleeding may mean that your blood is too thin. Excessive bleeding is bleeding that will not stop after you apply pressure to a wound for 10 minutes. Call your doctor right away if you have any of these signs.
- Heart attack. Signs of heart attack include mild or severe chest pain or discomfort in the center of the chest or upper abdomen that lasts for more than a few minutes or goes away and comes back. It can feel like pressure, squeezing, fullness, heartburn, or indigestion. There may also be pain down the left arm. Women may also have chest pain and pain down the left arm, but they are more likely to have other symptoms, such as shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, unusual tiredness, and pain in the back, shoulders, or jaw. Read more about the signs and symptoms of a heart attack.
- Stroke. If you think someone may be having a stroke, act F.A.S.T. and do the following simple test.
F—Face: Ask the person to smile. Does one side of the face droop?
A—Arms: Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?
S—Speech: Ask the person to repeat a simple phrase. Is their speech slurred or strange?
T—Time: If you observe any of these signs, call 9-1-1 immediately. Every minute matters.
- Sudden cardiac arrest. Usually, the first sign of sudden cardiac arrest is fainting. At the same time, no heartbeat can be felt. Some people may have a racing heartbeat or feel dizzy or light-headed just before they faint. Within an hour before cardiac arrest, some people have chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea, or vomiting. Call 9-1-1 right away if someone has signs or symptoms of sudden cardiac arrest. Look for a defibrillator nearby and follow the instructions.
Learn about other precautions to help you stay safe
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Arrhythmia - Living With
If you have arrhythmia, you will need to learn ways to care for your condition at home. You will also need to avoid activities that may trigger your arrhythmia.
- Ask your doctor whether you can continue your daily activities without any changes. Your doctor may recommend low or moderate activity; avoiding competitive sports; eliminating activities that might trigger an arrhythmia, such as swimming or diving; or participating in activities with a partner.
- Carry a medical device ID card with information about your defibrillator or pacemaker and contact information for the health care provider who oversees your care. Medical bracelets with information about your condition can also be helpful in the event of an emergency.
- Check with your doctor before taking over-the-counter medicines, nutritional supplements, or cold and allergy medicines. Some of these products can trigger rapid heart rhythms or interact poorly with heart rhythm medicines.
- Learn how to take your pulse. Discuss with your doctor what pulse rate is normal for you. Keep a record of changes in your pulse rate, and share this information with your doctor.
- Lie down if you feel dizzy or faint or if you feel palpitations. Do not try to walk or drive. Let your doctor know about these symptoms.
- Talk to your doctor about techniques that you can do at home if you notice your heart racing. These include breathing out without letting your breath escape or putting a cold, wet towel over your face.