A disruption of the heart rhythm can cause serious damage to the heart itself and to the entire body – causing myocardial infarction, stroke, and other serious consequences. In addition, arrhythmia can seriously worsen the patient’s quality of life. Clinics and cardiology centers in Israel use the most advanced methods of treating arrhythmia with minimally invasive or non-invasive medical methods, which lead to complete elimination of this cardiovascular disease in more than 90% of cases.
Risk factors
Arrhythmia often occurs against the background of excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, and drug use. Severe intoxication with toxic substances disrupts the work of the sinus node of the heart, which is responsible for the normal rhythm of beating. Other risk factors include:
- frequent severe stress and psychoemotional exhaustion;
- electrolyte imbalance;
- hormonal disorders, including a large release of adrenaline;
- low level of hemoglobin in the blood;
- physical overload.
Some cardiovascular diseases can also lead to arrhythmias:
- heart defects;
- ischemia;
- hypertension;
- chronic heart failure;
- cardiomyopathy.
Cardiovascular diseases can disrupt the conduction of contraction signals from the atria to the ventricles.
Symptoms of cardiac arrhythmia
Symptoms depend on the type of arrhythmia.
- Tachycardia – rapid rhythmic heartbeat with a frequency of >90 beats/min.
- Bradycardia – slow rhythmic heartbeat with a frequency of <50 beats/min.
- Extrasystole – irregular and untimely contraction of the heart chambers.
- Atrial fibrillation is a special case of tachycardia, when the heart contracts rapidly, but chaotically with alternating contraction of its departments.
- Atrioventricular block (AV block) is a specific case of bradycardia, when the heart rate slows down sharply or stops for a while.
In addition to the described symptoms that are characteristic of each type of cardiac arrhythmia, there are other subjective clinical manifestations of cardiac arrhythmia: shortness of breath, headaches and dizziness up to fainting.
Diagnostics
- Laboratory blood test (total and hormones).
- Electrocardiography (ECG).
- Echocardiography.
- Ultrasound examination.
- Chest X-ray.
- Physical examination and 24-hours heart rate monitoring.
Treatment of cardiac arrhythmia in Israel
- Non-invasive drug therapy, including anticoagulants.
- Ablation (blocking) of the affected area of the heart muscle that produces incorrect signals. This is a minimally invasive operation that is performed using a catheter through large vessels. The effectiveness of arrhythmia treatment of the ablation technique is over 90%.
- Revascularization (endovascular surgery). This minimally invasive stenting and angioplasty operation is performed if the cardiac arrhythmia is caused by coronary vessel stenosis.
- Implantation of a pacemaker. This operation is performed in patients with a severe form of cardiac arrhythmia. The stimulator consists of a power source which is inserted subcutaneously and electrodes that are attached to the heart through thin incisions in the chest.
Only the most modern pacemakers which can work without charging for 15 years are used in Israeli clinics. In addition, all Israeli clinics are equipped with state-of-the-art medical and diagnostic equipment, which, combined with highly qualified cardiologists with international recognition, has made Israel a center of medical tourism for patients with arrhythmia and other heart diseases from all over the world.