Heart Rhythm

Hearts should have normal rhythm to their beats, but when these beats are out of synch, it causes inefficient pumping of blood. Irregular heart arrhythmias occur when the electrical signals that coordinate the heart's beats do not work properly. This can cause beats that are too fast (tachycardia), or too slow (bradycardia). Tachycardias include atrial fibrillation (AFib), supraventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, and ventricular tachycardia (VT). Bradycardias include sick sinus syndrome and conduction block. Electrophysiology arrhythmia treatments include medications, life style changes, and the EP lab interventions of catheter ablation, and implantable pacemakers or defibrillators.

New-look implantable device can identify, treat heart disease

The patch harvests energy from each heartbeat, allowing it to operate with no external power source. 

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Obese men with type 2 diabetes face an increased risk of AFib

These findings are especially important, the authors wrote, because they suggest there may be a new way to personalize patient care. 

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Catheter ablation improves LVEF, boosts survival for heart failure patients with atrial fibrillation

Catheter ablation was consistently linked to more substantial LVEF improvements than pharmacological therapy.

New ablation technique for atrial fibrillation proven safe and effective in first-in-human study

Irreversible electroporation, the authors noted, could help clinicians avoid the drawbacks of thermal ablation

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Bigger babies may face a higher risk of atrial fibrillation as adults

The eye-opening findings were presented during the Great Wall International Congress of Cardiology 2020 virtual meeting.

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These type 2 diabetes medications reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation

“These observations might have direct treatment implications," researchers wrote. 

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Hydroxychloroquine linked to reducing ICU admissions among hospitalized COVID-19 patients by 53%

Chloroquine, however, was not found to have such an effect.

Supplements containing cesium chloride linked to heart toxicity, cardiac arrest, arrhythmias and death, FDA warns

Five companies received warnings from the FDA for illegally selling supplements containing cesium chloride. 

Around the web

Ron Blankstein, MD, professor of radiology, Harvard Medical School, explains the use of artificial intelligence to detect heart disease in non-cardiac CT exams.

Eleven medical societies have signed on to a consensus statement aimed at standardizing imaging for suspected cardiovascular infections.