Dr. Ben Wedro practices emergency medicine at Gundersen Clinic, a regional trauma center in La Crosse, Wisconsin. His background includes undergraduate and medical studies at the University of Alberta, a Family Practice internship at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario and residency training in Emergency Medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.
Dr. Kulick received his undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Southern California, School of Medicine. He performed his residency in internal medicine at the Harbor-University of California Los Angeles Medical Center and a fellowship in the section of cardiology at the Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Cardiology.
Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.
What is paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT)?
Normally, an electrical signal is generated in special pacemaker cells in the
upper chamber (atrium) of the heart. This impulse causes the atrium to beat in a
coordinated fashion and push blood into the ventricles (the lower heart
chambers). The electrical signal continues to a junction box between the atrium
and ventricle (the AV node), where there is a slight delay. This allows the
atrium to contract and send blood to the ventricle. The signal continues
throughout the ventricles and causing them to beat and push blood to the body.
In paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT), abnormal conduction of
that electricity causes the atrium, and secondarily the ventricles, to beat very
rapidly. It is paroxysmal, because the rapid rate can occur sporadically and
without warning. It may last a few seconds or many hours. Often the PSVT
resolves before the patient reaches a healthcare provider. The abnormal
conduction pathways may occur anywhere in the atrium or around the AV node.
PSVT was once also called paroxysmal atrial tachycardia or PAT. As more has
been learned about the electrical wiring of the heart, terminology has changed,
and the term PAT is more often reserved for a specific type of circular
electrical conduction pattern occurring in the true atrial tissue, and not the
AV node.
Regardless of the terminology, the rhythm disturbance occurs in the AV node,
or in the atrium above, and should not be confused with ventricular tachycardia,
which arises from the ventricle and is life-threatening.
What are the symptoms of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT)?
PSVT often presents with the complaints of palpitations described as a rapid
heart rate often felt in the throat and may be associated with:
Palpitations are unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. Palpitations can be relieved in many patients by stress reduction, stopping cigarettes, and reduction of caffeine and alcohol.
Heart rhythm disorders vary from minor palpitations, premature atrial contractions (PACs), premature ventricular contractions (PVCs), sinus tachycardia, and sinus brachycardia, to abnormal heart rhythms such as tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, ventricular flutter, atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT), Wolf-White-Parkinson syndrome, brachycardia, or heart blocks. Treatment is dependant upon the type of heart rhythm disorder.
Smoking is an addiction. More than 430,000 deaths occur each year in the U.S. from smoking related illnesses. Secondhand smoke or "passive smoke" also harm family members, coworkers, and others around smokers. There are a number of techniques available to assist people who want to quit smoking.
Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is a condition in which abnormal electrical pathways in the heart cause arrhythmias. Symptoms of Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome include tachycardia, dizziness, palpitations, fainting, and shortness of breath. Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is a common cause of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is caused by mutations in the PRKAG2 gene.
The heart is a very important organ in the body. It is responsible for continuously pumping oxygen and nutrient-rich blood throughout your body to sustain life. It is a fist-sized muscle that beats (expands and contracts) 100,000 times per day, pumping a total of five or six quarts of blood each minute, or about 2,000 gallons per day.
By smoking, you can cause health problems not only for yourself but also for
those around you.
Hurting Yourself
Smoking is an addiction. Tobacco contains
nicotine, a drug that
is addictive. The nicotine, therefore, makes it very difficult (although not
impossible) to quit. In fact, since the U.S. Surgeon General's 1964 report on
the dangers of smoking, millions of Americans have quit. Still, approximately
440,000 deaths occur in the U.S. each year from smoking-related illnesses; this
represents almost 1 out of every 5 deaths. The
reason for these deaths is that smoking greatly increases the risk of getting
lung cancer, heart attack, chronic lung disease, stroke, and many other cancers.
Moreover, smoking is perhaps the most preventable cause of breathing
(respiratory) diseases within
the USA.
Hurting Others
Smoking harms not just the smoker, but also family
mem...
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