Virtually everyone has felt their heart flutter, skip a beat, or race; momentary heart rhythm changes or extra beats can be triggered by a variety of everyday factors, ranging from stress and fatigue to dehydration and the overconsumption of caffeine.
But when heart palpitations persist — your heart flutters whenever you’re lying down, or it “flip-flops” in your chest every time you climb the stairs — it’s time to see our team at Sunnyvale Cardiology — you may have an arrhythmia that requires treatment.
Let’s take a closer look at when an electrophysiology (EP) study may be part of the diagnostic evaluation process for your abnormal heart rhythm.
Your heart’s electrical system sends continuous signals that tell the cardiac muscle when to beat, helping this vital organ maintain a steady, organized rate and rhythm and keep its four chambers in synchronized harmony.
When something disrupts these signals, your heart can misfire, beat too slowly, too quickly, or in an irregular pattern. Common abnormal heart rhythms, or arrhythmias, include:
Given that AFib, the most common arrhythmia, is a major risk factor for stroke as well as cardiac arrest, it’s vitally important to seek expert evaluation and care for any suspected heart rate or rhythm problem.
Heart palpitations are one sign of a possible arrhythmia; other potential indicators include periodic dizziness or lightheadedness, shortness of breath, fatigue, and fainting or feeling faint. An irregular heart rate or rhythm can also be discovered incidentally, during a routine checkup, in the absence of palpitations or other symptoms.
A preliminary evaluation for a suspected arrhythmia involves gathering and assessing information from a physical exam, medical history, lifestyle habits, family heart health history, and symptom checklist.
To confirm you have an arrhythmia and possibly determine its underlying cause, we use diagnostic tests to record your heart’s electrical activity at rest, under stress, over a period of time, or when you feel symptoms. These standard, noninvasive tests include:
Usually, our team can get enough information from some combination of these tests. We may also order an echocardiogram, which looks at heart structure and pumping function, and blood tests to check electrolyte levels or thyroid function.
Sometimes, more detailed testing is needed to evaluate a suspected arrhythmia or to get further insight about the cause of abnormal cardiac electrical activity recorded by an EKG or other test. This is when an electrophysiology (EP) study may be recommended.
An EP study involves inserting several thin tubes, called catheters, through a blood vessel (usually a vein in the groin) into each chamber of the heart.
These specialized catheters have sensors that record cardiac electrical signals; they also send tiny signals to safely test cardiac response, so we can determine exactly where chaotic rhythms or beat changes begin.
In some cases, we may also perform a catheter ablation during the procedure to halt the abnormal electrical connections that are causing the arrhythmia.
An EP study is often the next best step when standard tests don’t fully explain heart rhythm symptoms, or when we need a more detailed map of the cardiac electrical system. It may be part of your arrhythmia evaluation or care process if:
The information from an EP study can also help us determine whether your heart rhythm problem puts you at risk for sudden cardiac death — and if you require a pacemaker or an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) to safeguard your health.
Whether recent EKG testing for a suspected arrhythmia requires further investigation, or you need to get to the bottom of serious, unexplained symptoms like blacking out, an EP study may be the next best step. Call or message our team at Sunnyvale Cardiology in Sunnyvale, Texas, today to schedule your appointment.
