AF

Atrialfibrillation

?
Wh
atisa
t
ri
alfi
b
ri
ll
a
ti
on
?

300 600

Atrial
fibrillation(AF)isoneofthemostcommonirregularhertrhythms.Therate
ofimpulsesthroughtheatriacanragefrom300to600beatsperminute.If
youcouldlookinsideyourchestthetoppartofyourheartwouldbe
shakinglikeJell.Youfeelanuncomfortableflutterinyourchestorlike
yourheartisgoingtojumpoutofyourribs.yourpulseisirregularand/or
morerapidthannormal.Youmayfeellightheadedandhaveshortnessof
breath.

?
Wh
atca
us
e
sAF
?
M
o
stc
o
mm
onca
us
e:
1. Hypertension(highbloodpressure)
2. Coronaryarterydisease
3. Afterheartsurgery
4. Valvedisease
5. Chroniclungdisease
6. Heartfailure
7. Cardiomyopathy(diseaseofheartmuscle)
8. Congenitalheartdisease(presentatbirth)
9. Pulmonaryembolism(bloodclotinthelungs)
5000/T089

 Lesscommoncause:
1. Hyperthyroidism(overactivethyroid)
2. Pericarditis(inflammationofoutsideliningoftheheart)
10%

60Inatleast10
percentofcasesnounderlyingheartdiseaseisfound.Inthesecases
AFmayberelatedtoalcoholexcessivecaffeineusestresssomedrug
electrolyteormetabolicimbalancesorsevereinfection.Insomecases
nocausemaybefound.
TheriskofAFincreaseswithageespeciallyafter60yearsofage.

?
Wh
atar
et
hes
y
mp
t
om
so
fAF
?
1.-
Heartpalpitations-asuddenpoundingflutteringorracingfeelingin
yourchest.
2. Lackofenergyorfeelingover-tired.
3.-Dizziness-feelinglightheadedorfaint.
4.-
Chestdiscomfort-painpressureordiscomfortinthechest.
5.-
Shortnessofbreath-havingdifficultybreathingwhiledoingnormal
avtivitiesoratrest.
6.SomepeoplehaveAFwithoutanysympotomsatall.

?
IsA
Fd
an
g
er
ou
s
?
AF

Manypeopleliveforyearswithatrialfibrillationwithoutproblems.For
5000/T089

manyyears
AFwasthoughasaharmlessannoyance.Howevernowitisknown
thatchronicatrialfibrillationcanresultinfutureproblems.

5-7
Becausetheatriaarebeating
rapidlyandirregularlyblooddoesnotflowthroughthemasquickly.This
makesthebloodmorelikelytoclot.Iftheclotispumpedoutofthe
heart
itcantraveltothebrain
resultinginastroke.Peoplewithatrial
fibrillationarefivetoseventimesmorelikelytohaveastrokethan
thegeneralpopulation.Clotscanalsotraveltootherpartsofthe
body(kidneysheartintestines)
causingdamage.
20-30%
Atrial
fibrillationcanalsodecreasetheheartspumpingabilitybyasmuch
as20to30percent.Atrialfibrillationcombinedwithafastheartrate
overalongperiodoftimecanresultinheartfailure.

Chronicatrialfibrillationisassociatedwithanincreasedriskof
death.

?
H
o
wi
sAFdi
ag
n
os
ed
?
1. electrocardiogram
2.24 Holtermonitor

?
H
o
wi
sAFtr
ea
t
ed
?
T
h
epu
r
po
seofA
Ft
r
ea
tm
e
nti
st
o:
1.:
procainamide Rythmol(propafenone)cordarone.
Restorenormalheartrhythm:Manymedicationsareavailabletorestore
andmaintainanormalheartrythm suchasprocainamide Rythmol
5000/T089

(propafenone)cordarone.
2.: digoxinbeta-blockersandcalciumchannelblockers.
Controlheartrate:suchasdigoxinbeta-blockersandcalciumchannel
blockers.
3.: coumadin(warfarin)
. aspirin
coumadin.
Preventclotsandstroke:coumadin(warfarin).
Whencoumadinisusedregularbloodtestsarerequiredtoassure
thatthebloodisthinnedatasafeandaffectivelevel.somepeople
maybetreatedwithaspirininsteadofcoumadin.

L
i
f
es
ty
l
ec
ha
ng
e
s
1. Ifyousmokestop.
2. Limityourintakeofalcohol.
3. Limitorstopusingcaffeine.
4. Bewareofstimulantsusedincoughandcoldmedications.

:(049)2912151
:2591.1592
(20
11-01)

5000/T089