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- Mayo Clinic: Tachycardia -- Treatments and Drugs
- MedlinePlus: Ventricular Tachycardia
- American Heart Association: Ventricular Tachycardia
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What Are the Treatments for a Rapid Heart Rate?
Tachycardia, or a rapid heart rate, can be caused by a variety of disorders that affect the heart, blood vessels or even the nervous system. Whether acute or chronic, tachycardia can cause life-threatening consequences. Treatments aim to slow down the heart and prevent any permanent damage to the patient.
If you are experiencing serious medical symptoms, seek emergency treatment immediately.
Vagal Maneuvers
Patients experiencing an episode of tachycardia may be asked to perform vagal maneuvers by their doctors, reports MayoClinic.com. Vagal maneuvers are a set of voluntary physiologic actions that affect the vagus nerve, which is a nerve that helps regulate the heart rate. Vagal maneuvers include bearing down as if defecating, coughing and placing an icepack on the patient’s face. As the vagal nerve is stimulated, the rapid heart rate begins to slow.
- Patients experiencing an episode of tachycardia may be asked to perform vagal maneuvers by their doctors, reports MayoClinic.com.
- Vagal maneuvers include bearing down as if defecating, coughing and placing an icepack on the patient’s face.
Anti-Arrhythmic Drugs
High Heart Rate & Low Heart Pressure
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Doctors sometimes prescribe anti-arrhythmic drugs to patients with a rapid heart rate, states the American Heart Association 3. These drugs are used to slow down the heart by affecting the cells that control the heart rate. Examples of anti-arrhythmic drugs include procainamide, lidocaine and bretylium. These drugs can have serious side effects, and patients taking them should be monitored carefully.
- Doctors sometimes prescribe anti-arrhythmic drugs to patients with a rapid heart rate, states the American Heart Association 3.
- These drugs can have serious side effects, and patients taking them should be monitored carefully.
External Caridoversion
In severe cases of tachycardia, doctors may decide to perform external cardioversion in order to force the heart to return to a normal rate and rhythm, according to MayoClinic.com. External cardioversion is a procedure that delivers an electric shock to the patient’s heart through patches or paddles placed on the chest. The electrical current affects the impulses controlling the heart rate. External cardioversion is used in emergency cases where medications or vagal maneuvers are not effective.
- In severe cases of tachycardia, doctors may decide to perform external cardioversion in order to force the heart to return to a normal rate and rhythm, according to MayoClinic.com.
Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator
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An implantable cardioverter defibrillator, or ICD, is a device that can be placed in a patient’s chest to control the heart rate. This is very useful in treating chronic cases of a rapid heart rate, according to MedlinePlus. The ICD is like a pacemaker that is placed in the upper left part of the patient’s chest. The device is attached to the heart via a set of wires, and is programmed to sense when a patient is suffering from tachycardia. When the device senses a rapid increase in heart rate, it sends out pulses that interrupt the tachycardia and restore the heart to a normal rhythm.
- An implantable cardioverter defibrillator, or ICD, is a device that can be placed in a patient’s chest to control the heart rate.
- The ICD is like a pacemaker that is placed in the upper left part of the patient’s chest.
Related Articles
References
- Mayo Clinic: Tachycardia -- Treatments and Drugs
- MedlinePlus: Ventricular Tachycardia
- American Heart Association: Ventricular Tachycardia
- Abarbanell NR, Marcotte MA, Schaible BA, Aldinger GE. Prehospital management of rapid atrial fibrillation: recommendations for treatment protocols. Am J Emerg Med. 2001 Jan;19(1):6-9. doi:10.1053/ajem.2001.18124
- Garner, JB., & M Miller, J. (2013). Wide Complex Tachycardia – Ventricular Tachycardia or Not Ventricular Tachycardia, That Remains the Question. Arrhythmia & Electrophysiology Review, 2(1), 23–29. doi:10.15420/aer.2013.2.1.23
- Page, R., Joglar, J., Caldwell, M., Calkins, H., Conti, J., & Deal, B. et al. (2015). 2015 ACC/AHA/HRS Guideline for the Management of Adult Patients With Supraventricular Tachycardia. Circulation, 133(14), e506-e574. doi:10.1161/cir.0000000000000311
Writer Bio
Joseph Pritchard graduated from Our Lady of Fatima Medical School with a medical degree. He has spent almost a decade studying humanity. Dr. Pritchard writes as a San Francisco biology expert for a prominent website and thoroughly enjoys sharing the knowledge he has accumulated.