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.

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Burnout boosts likelihood of atrial fibrillation

Burnout may increase a person’s risk of developing atrial fibrillation by as much as 20%, researchers reported this month in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

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FDA approves world’s smallest pacemaker with AV synchrony

Medtronic announced Jan. 21 it had received FDA approval for its Micra AV device—the world’s smallest pacemaker with atrioventricular synchrony.

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Mechanical hyperventilation could streamline cardiac ablation

A medical technique that involves safely hyperventilating conscious, unmedicated patients could facilitate the use of radiotherapy for cardiac ablation, according to research published in Frontiers in Physiology

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HRS, CTA pen consumer guidelines for CV wearables

The Heart Rhythm Society and Consumer Technology Association will debut new consumer guidelines this week focused on wearables that detect and monitor cardiovascular metrics.

Warfarin more harmful to bone health than DOACs

A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine last month found that direct oral anticoagulants were more effective in minimizing AFib patients’ risk of experiencing fracture than warfarin, supporting the theory that the blood thinner might be harmful to bone health.

Researchers reprogram fat-derived stem cells to act as biologic pacemakers

Researchers at the University of Houston are pioneering a unique method for developing biological pacemakers: converting stem cells found in fat to biologic pacemaker cells.

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Researchers rig CIEDs to help track, predict AFib

New research out of Spain suggests we’re one step closer to personalized medicine for patients with atrial fibrillation.

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Obesity mutes efficacy of sodium channel blockers for those with AFib

Atrial fibrillation patients who are obese are less likely to respond to sodium channel blockers than their normal-weight peers, according to a new study.

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.