Arrhythmia Surgery Cost in India

Arrhythmia is a heart disorder in which the heartbeat rate or rhythm is irregular—too slow, too fast or completely out of whack. When the heartbeat is too slow, it is known as bradycardia and if it beats too faster than normal, it is called tachycardia.

In general, arrhythmias are harmless but some can cause serious problems, and some may even be life-threatening. Irregularity in the heart rate impedes the heart’s ability to supply enough blood to the body resulting in serious brain, heart or organ damage.

In simple terms, arrhythmias are caused by a problem in the internal electrical system of the heart that is responsible for controlling its rate and rhythm. When the heart is in a normal working condition the electrical signal flows from the top to the bottom of the heart. This electrical signal, as it travels on its path, causes the heart to contract and pump blood. A similar cycle repeats itself with each heartbeat. An arrhythmia occurs if there is any problem in the flow of this electrical signal in the heart.

Types of Arrhythmia

Arrhythmia can be classified into two categories, namely ventricular and supraventricular. Ventricular arrhythmias, as the name suggests occurs in the ventricles, which are located in the lower chambers of the heart. Supraventricular arrhythmias happen in the upper chamber of the heart which is located above the ventricles. This upper chamber is called the atria. The nature of arrhythmias can be broadly differentiated into two types. If the heart beats to fast, it is known as tachycardia, and if it’s too slow, it is called bradycardia.

Bradycardia

If your heart beats less than 60 per minute, it’s generally regarded as bradycardia. This occurs when the sinoatrial node (SA) node, which is the heart’s natural pacemaker, is unable to generate the electrical impulse that directs the heart to contract. It may also occur if the electrical impulse does not reach the ventricles through the correct channels. Often, too slow heartbeats are associated with elderly people but they can affect the young as well. There could be two possible causes for bradycardia. First, the SA node may be damaged or secondly, when the central nervous system fails to signal the heart that it has to pump more blood. These medical conditions may be due to aging, heart disease or congenital heart defects. It may also occur due to medications taken to control high blood pressure and arrhythmias.

Tachycardia

Your heart is considered to be in tachycardia if it beats at a very fast rate of more than 100 beats per minute. Tachycardia is of many types and categorized according to its location in the heart. One that begins in the ventricles is called a ventricular tachycardia, while that which begins above the ventricles is called supraventricular tachycardia.

As mentioned earlier, arrhythmias can be categorized into two different types: ventricular arrhythmias and supraventricular arrhythmias. Let’s learn more about them below.

• Ventricular Arrhythmias
  • Ventricular Tachycardi:  In ventricular tachycardia, the sinoatrial node (SA) node, which is the heart’s natural pacemaker, loses control of the beating of the heart. Strangely, some other areas of the heart which lie along the lower electrical pathway start acting as the pacemaker. Due to this displacement of natural roles, the signal does not flow according to its normal route and fails to give the right impulses to the heart muscle and causes erratic heart beats. The person suffering from ventricular tachycardia may experience dizziness, fainting and severe shortness of breath. They may also feel that the heart is skipping beats.
  • Ventricular Fibrillation: Ventricular fibrillation falls among the most serious or dangerous types of arrhythmias. Annually, ventricular fibrillation causes around 220,000 deaths from heart attacks. The patient in this condition experiences uncontrolled and irregular beats. The biggest problem with this type of arrhythmia is that the heart is receiving electrical impulses to beat from different locations at the same time. This activity creates utter chaos in the heart sometimes causing the heart to beat at 300 beats per minute. Though the heart beats very fast, it fails to pump enough blood to the brain from the heart and causes fainting. A person with ventricular fibrillation requires immediate medical attention. People with heart diseases and a history of heart attacks are at high risk of suffering from ventricular fibrillation.
  • Premature Ventricular Contractions: Compared to ventricular fibrillation premature ventricular contraction (PVC) is less serious. In PVC, the ventricles contract much sooner than normal, causing the heartbeat to go out of sync. This type of ventricular arrhythmia is not serious and one may not require treatment. However, it is a cause of concern if you have a past history of heart disorders and ventricular tachycardia. Premature ventricular contraction is often caused by caffeine found in tea, coffee, sodas and over the counter medicines, as well as chocolates.

• Supraventricular Arrhythmias

In general, supraventricular arrhythmias are not as dangerous as ventricular arrhythmias. They may happen for a number of reasons including consumption of alcohol, coffee, tobacco, and cough and cold medicines. Other reasons include hyperthyroidism and rheumatic heart disease. Chest tightness, fast pulse, shortness of breath and heart palpitations are some of the symptoms of supraventricular arrhythmias.

• Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT) or Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardia (PSVT): SVT causes regular but faster heartbeats ranging between 150-250 beats per minute in the atria. This type of arrhythmia is common in infants and young people.
• Atrial Fibrillation: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a serious type of arrhythmia and the main cause of stroke, especially among the older generation. Fast, irregular rhythms of the heart accompanied by the contraction of single muscle fibers are the characteristics of atrial fibrillation. AF causes the blood to accumulate in the heart’s upper chambers leading to blood clots which can result in cerebral or brain strokes. Most patients with AF are given antiplatelet therapy to prevent blood clots.
• Atrial Flutter: When the atria beat very fast, it causes the ventricles to beat asynchronously causing atrial flutter. 
• Heart Block: Heart block is a serious type of supraventricular arrhythmia caused by a malfunction in the SA node. This condition is often caused by swelling, aging or scarring of the heart resulting from coronary artery disease. There are three types of heart blocks categorized according to their severity.
  • First-degree heart block occurs when the electrical impulses are moving too slowly through the AV node.
  • In second-degree heart block the ventricles are out of sync in their beats because though the impulses travel through the atria it gets delayed in the AV node.
  • Third-degree is a serious type of heart block that can lead to heart failure or death. In this type of arrhythmia, no impulses reach the ventricles and the ventricles come up with a backup pacemaker that has a slower rate. The replacement pacemaker causes a gap in time causing a person to faint and resulting in the Stokes-Adam attack.

Signs and Symptoms

Some common symptoms of arrhythmias include:

• Palpitations (feeling that the heart is fluttering, skipping a beat or beating too fast)
• Heart beating slower than normal
• Irregular, arrhythmic beats
• Anxiety
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Weakness, dizziness and light-headedness
• Sweating
• Fainting

Arrhythmia Treatment

Your doctor will decide on the treatment approach based on the type and severity of arrhythmia. Arrhythmia is commonly treated by medicines, surgery or medical procedures. When an arrhythmia causes regular chest pain, fainting and dizziness then you are recommended to go for treatment by your doctor. Treatment is a must if you have increased risk of strokes, heart failure or cardiac arrest.

• Medicines: Anti-arrhythmics are medicines that used to normalize a heart that beats too fast or too slow. These medicines correct the heart’s abnormal rhythm to a normal, stable one. Beta blockers, calcium channel blockers and digoxin are used to slow down the heart rate in people who have a faster heart rate, especially people with atrial fibrillation. Medicines are also used to treat the underlying condition that may be causing arrhythmias.
• Medical Procedures: Devices such as a pacemaker and implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) are also used to treat arrhythmias. Additionally, other procedures such as defibrillation and catheter ablation are used when medicines are not effective.
• Surgery: ​Arrhythmia may sometimes require surgical intervention. Often, surgeries are performed to treat arrhythmia when a surgery is being done for some other heart disorders such as heart valve repair, coronary artery bypass grafting, etc.