Fighting Heart Block

The hearts is composed of two ventricles and two atria. These are the components of the four chambers of the heart with which it does all its body functions accordingly. If you know of the mechanical heart pacers placed near the heart to regulate its beats, our hearts by nature have it. It is called the sinoatrial node or the sinus node. It is the part of the heart that produces electrical beats and impulses that regulates a person’s heartbeat.

What exactly happens is this: the signal travels from the sinotrial node to the path going to the ventricles. As it goes that path, it passes through a special conducting tissue, known as the atrioventricular node. This is basically how the heart beats.

Heart block happens when the atrioventricular nodes are blocked. This means that the signal fails to pass through the node coming from the heart’s lower chambers. The signal may be blocked, but this does not follow that the blood vessels are blocked and the flow of blood is disrupted as well. Heart blocks have different degrees. It can be classified as a first degree, second degree or a third degree heart block. Third degree heart block is often referred to as a complete heart block.

On a first-degree heart block, electrical impulse still gets through the atrioventricular node. Only it does that very slowly than what is expected. Normally, the impulse should have traveled in less than a fraction of a second, more specifically, in 0.2 seconds. If the impulse traveled longer than that, first-degree heart block happens.

First-degree heart blocks do not necessarily need any treatment. In fact, most athletes have it. If the heartbeat rate is within normal parameters despite the condition, then heart should be fine. Some medicines, called the digitalis, may even cause first-degree heart block as a side effect in a person.

Second-degree heart blocks happen when the signal fails to reach the heart’s lower chambers. This is the condition where in dropped heartbeats occurs. There are two subtypes of second-degree heart block. The first instance is when the electrical impulse becomes gradually delayed with the heart’s every beat until a single beat or more is missed. This is not necessarily serious but it can cause lightheadedness as well as other symptoms.

The other type of second-degree heart block is more serious than the other one. Although the same thing happens, their effect is quite different. In this type of a second-degree heart block, known as the Mobitz Type 2, the heartbeat becomes abnormally slow a mechanical peacemaker device is needed to regulate it.

Now on a third degree heart block, the signal doesn’t pass through any of the heart’s chambers at all. In a complete heart block, the heart does not function correctly anymore. Therefore an even more serious problem, or an entirely different disease for that matter, arises.

Total heart block is caused by a heart disease. It can also be a side effect of some drugs. Heart blocks may also be congenital. Aside from that, it can also be the result of heart injuries and surgery. A third degree heart block is considered to be a health emergency as a cardiac arrest may happen. Surgery is usually required and the fitting of a pacemaker has to be performed right away.

With the diagnosis of any type of heart block, proper medical attention has to be performed by an expert cardiologist. This is to make sure that the condition won’t accelerate to a more severe case wherein the heart cannot work in the proper way that it should. So at the first sign of a heart block, consult with your doctor. Doing so may even save your life.