Overview and Facts about Heart Rhythm Disorders
Complex heart rhythm disorders are one of the many cardiac conditions diagnosed and treated by the highly skilled doctors at Loyola Medicine.
Serving as a major regional and national referral center for the treatment of complex heart rhythm disorders, Loyola offers treatment options that are often unavailable elsewhere.
Your heart rhythm is normally controlled by your SA node (sinoatrial node), which sends impulses to your AV node (atrioventricular node).
When these impulses are not functioning properly, irregular heartbeats (called arrhythmias) create a disturbance in heart contractions, leading to inefficient pumping of blood to the body.
Although there are several types of arrhythmias, they may be classified into four main categories:
Why Choose Loyola for Treatment of Heart Rhythm Disorders?
Our multidisciplinary team of leading cardiac electrophysiologists, advanced practice nurses, technical staff, imaging experts and other professionals provides an integrated approach to the diagnosis and treatment of a variety of rhythm disturbances and their associated underlying conditions.
Loyola’s heart rhythm specialists are frequently at the forefront of new technology innovations for the treatment of patients, including magnetically guided catheter ablation, cryoablation and clinical trials.
Loyola is committed to working with even the youngest of patients. Children can be born with cardiac arrhythmias (congenital disorders) caused by a birth defect of the heart or they may acquire this condition even with normal formation of the heart.
Loyola offers children who demonstrate symptoms of cardiac arrhythmia evaluation by expert pediatric electrophysiologists.
Tests and Diagnosis of Heart Rhythm Disorders
Doctors at Loyola are skilled at recognizing the symptoms of complex heart arrhythmia, which may include:
- A quiver in your chest
- Chest pain
- Dizziness
- Fainting
- Fast pulse rate
- Fatigue
- Lightheadedness
- Shortness of breath
Your symptoms, combined with a complete medical history and physical exam, may indicate the presence of heart arrhythmias.
If you doctor suspects an arrhythmia, you may undergo any of the following additional testing to accurately diagnose your condition:
Throughout the diagnostic process, Loyola is committed to your compassionate care.
Treatment and Care for Heart Rhythm Disorders
Treatments for heart rhythm disorders can range from medication management to surgical management requiring light sedation.
Your Loyola team will evaluate your specific condition and make recommendations that will provide the best outcomes for you.
Your treatment options may include:
