Exam 4 - Lecture 7 Flashcards
If the APs are generating faster than normal, this means we have a
abnormal pacemaker
Definition of arrhythmias
problems with conduction system of the heart or how the APs travel through the heart
5 causes of cardiac arrythmias
Abnormal rhythmicity of pacemaker
Shift of pacemaker from sinus node
Blocks at different points in transmission of cardiac impulse
Abnormal pathways for transmission
Spontaneous generation of abnormal impulses from any part of the heart
ectopic pacemaker
site within heart other than SA node that is generating heartbeats
Moving the VRm closer to threshold potential in pacemaker cell can
fire an early AP
Generally speaking, increase VRm causes
the heart to not completely reset itself
If VRm increaes at AV node, it may
fire an AP early before the SA node does, causing an arrythmia
Anything that increases VRm, will
increase risk of arrythmia
Tachycardia is due to a
abnormal SA node
Sinus tachycardias will have _____ in the normal orientation with a ____ PR interval.
P-wave; short
NSR officially becomes sinus tach at
101bpm
Why does increased body temp cause a abnormal rhythm?
sinus tach, due to increased energy demands
Causes of sinus tach in relation to nervous system?
overactive SNS, underactive PNS
If you have co-arrythmias, what can you do to combat the sinus tach associated with them?
d/t decreased stroke volume from arrythmia, heart may try to speed up to compensate. Need a beta blocker to combat that as long as a med to help with arrythmia.
Toxic conditions of heart leading to sinus tach (SA node)
Acidosis, nicotine, alcohol
Why do athletes have bradycardia?
Large stroke volume
physiologically large heart d/t athletic training
3 Causes of bradycardia
athletes
vagal stim
nerual reflex to drugs
Generally speaking, the higher your resting heart rate, the
worse off your heart bc it probably has a lower stroke volume
High heart rate is usually d/t
hyperthyroidism
What usually accomplishes bradycardia? vagaling or decreasing SNS?
increasing vagal stimulation
If you pump someone full of phenylephrine to drive the BP up, the baroreceptors detect that and will
slow heart rate down, reflex bradycardia.
Paroxysmal atrial tachycardia characteristics
Abnormal atrial excitation, SA nodes are firing irregularly, P and T waves overlap d/t timing, morph into eachother.
What are drug tx for paroxysmal atrial tachycardia?
Vagal reflex, beta blocker, digoxin
Sinoatrial block
impulses from SA node are blocked, may be from ischemia and cant reset its VG ion channels.
Causes cessation of P-waves, or inverted p-wave
usually results in AV node controlling heart rate.
What determines whether P-wave is inverted or absent?
Where it comes from in the AV node.
Early part of AV node: inverted
Late part of AV node: absent
Why is the p-wave absent if it comes from later part of AV node?
takes so long for the retrograde current to reach the rest of the tissue, it gets masked by ventricular current.