Arrhythmias Flashcards
where is the origin of a supraventricular arrhythmias?
above the ventricle
ie SA, atria, AV, HIS
where is the origin of a ventricular arrhythmia?
ventricle
what should be the only point of electrical contact between the atria and the ventricles?
AV node
what are ectopic beats?
beats or rhythms that originate in places other than the SA node
what are 3 common supraventricular tachycardias?
supraventricular arrhythmias
AF
Atrial flutter
ectopic atrial tachycardia
what are 2 common supraventricular bradycardia arrhythmias?
sinus bradycardia
sinus pauses
what are 3 common AV node arrhythmias?
AVN re-entry
Accessory pathway
AV block
what are 4 common ventricular arrhythmias?
premature ventricular complex (PVC)
ventricular tachycardia
ventricular fibrillation
asystole
what causes premature ventricular complexes?
ectopic beats originating from the ventricles
how can an accessory pathway arrhythmia be acquired?
MI
how can sleep apnoea cause arrhythmias?
because patients get hypoxic at night- metabolic cause of arrhythmia
what type of arrhythmia occurs in Wolf Parkinson White syndrome (WPW)?
re-entry:
accessory pathway tachycardia
what does hypothermia do to the pacemaker potential slope?
decreases slope- negative chronotropic effect
what does hyperthermia do to the pacemaker potential slope?
increases slope- positive chronotropic effect
what does hypoxia do to the pacemaker potential slope?
increases slope- positive chronotropic effect
what does hypercapnia do to the pacemaker potential slope?
increases slope- positive chronotropic effect
why can ischaemia or necrosis increase ectopics?
because local areas of ischaemia or necrosis increases automaticity of neighbouring cells
what does hypokalaemia do to the pacemaker potential slope, automaticity and length of repolarisation?
increase pacemaker potential slope increases automaticity (therefore increases ectopics) prolongs repolarisation
what does hyperkalaemia do to the pacemaker potential slope and AV conduction?
decreases pacemaker potential slope
slows AV node conduction
what is an afterdepolarisation?
a small depolarisation after the repolarisation phase of an AP, if this is of sufficient magnistude this will reach threshhold and lead to a full depolarisation- triggered activity
what are the 5 main symptoms of an arrhythmia?
palpitations SOB dizziness syncope sudden cardiac death
what are the 7 investigations used for a suspected arrhythmias?
12 lead ECG CXR echocardiogram stress ECG 24 hour ECG Holter monitoring event recorder Electrophysiological study
what type of heart disease do echocardiograms show?
structural heart disease
what is a stress ECG?
heart is provoked in a controlled way, ischamia or arrhythmias may only be present when the cardiac demand is higher
what is an event recorder?
a monitor which only turns the recorder on if it detects a change- if the patient feels symptoms it can manually be switched on
what is an electrophysiological stufy?
an invasive investigation which deliberately induces a clinical arrhythmia to study mechanism and map the pathway
opportunity to treat the arrhythmias by radiofrequency ablation
what is pre-excitation?
accessory pathway from atria to ventricles for AP to flow
what is the function of a 24 hour Holter ECG?
assesses for paroxysmal arrhythmias
heart rhythm is rarely captured though
what vein is the catheter for an electrophysiological study usually put through?
femoral vein
if an atrial ectopic beat is asymptomatic how do you treat?
no treatment
if an atrial ectopic beat has palpitations how do you treat?
beta blockers stimulant avoidance (caffeine, cigarettes)
what type of STEMI is most likely to cause sinus bradycardia?
inferior MI
how do you treat acute sinus bradycardia?
atropine
how do you treat sinus bradycardia if it causes haemodynamic compromise?
pacing
compare SVT to VT on ECG?
SVT- narrow complex tachycardia
VT- broad complex tachycardia
why are SVTs generally more tolerated than VTs?
because there are narrow complexes it means the heart is still pumping in a meaningful way
what is the purpose of vagal manoeuvers?
to stop supra-ventricular tachycardias
what is the vagal manouevre for infants?
ice water to face
what are the vagal manouevres for children?
blow through straw (valsalva manoeuvre)
carotid sinus massage
what are the vagal manouevres for adults?
carotid sinus massage breath holding coughing NG placement gagreflex anal sweep
what 3 things may supraventricular tachycardias be due to?
AV nodal re-entrant tachycardia
accessory pathway tachycardia (ie WFW)
ectopic atrial tachycardia
what are the 2 types of re-entry tachycardia?
AV nodal re-entry
accessory pathway