Disordered rhythm of the heart

Some disturbances of cardiac rhythm are congenital; others like auricular fibrillation are becoming more often at an increasing age or are induced by heart diseases.

A slowed heartbeat or fastened heartbeat as well as an irregular heartbeat sometimes in combination with shortness of breath, vertigo or unconsciousness.

An exact medical diagnostic is extremely important in order to exclude life-threatening disturbances of cardiac rhythm. The diagnostic measures include an analysis of the electrocardiogram at rest, often also long-term electrocardiographic monitorings are done and by means of an event recorder it is tried to document the disturbances of cardiac rhythm. If the documentations are insufficient a so-called electrophysiological examination with a streamlined deduction from the heart and a stimulation of the heart is conducted in order to provoke the disturbances of the cardiac rhythm and to analyze them. The most important thing is always to diagnose a heart disease or also to exclude it.

There are manifold treatment methods. Starting with slowing-down the patient over a medication therapy up to the ablation treatment or also the insertion of a heart pacemaker. In the case of life-threatening acute cardiac arrhythmia an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) can be implanted which can make out a cardiac arrhythmia itself and can also eliminate it.