How is arrhythmia diagnosed?
Rhythm disorders mean disruption of the heart's rhythm. In this case, the complaint that arises is mostly palpitations. Like electricity passing from somewhere; When there is electricity, you feel the electricity, in other words, you get a shock, but after the electricity is cut off, there may be no trace left. Palpitations are one such condition. You can diagnose arrhythmia during palpitations, but diagnosis can be difficult once the palpitations have passed. In these cases, the first and perhaps the most valuable diagnostic method requested by us heart doctors is to go to a health institution and have an ECG (cardiac electrocardiography) performed during palpitations. It is easy to desire but difficult to achieve. Because it is not always possible to take an ECG during short palpitations. But if it can be done, it will provide a lot of information in terms of diagnosis. Taking an ECG is an extremely simple method that can be done anywhere. By looking at the ECG taken during palpitation, we can easily understand whether there is an arrhythmia or not, and if so, what type it is.
What should be done if an ECG cannot be taken?
At this stage, we have what we have. We introduce other diagnostic tools. One of these is Holter devices that record ECG for 24-48 hours. The Holter device is a device that is connected to the body with cables the size of a large telephone. After the device is connected, the patient returns to his daily life. The device records the person's heartbeat as long as it remains connected. To detect if a rhythm disorder occurs while the device is on.
What should be done if there is no palpitation while the device is on?
Unfortunately, a significant portion of the patients experience palpitations every month. It is not easy to diagnose with this type of devices as it can happen 1-2 times. In this case, the other option we have is to diagnose with electrophysiological study (EPS), which is an invasive procedure. This procedure is a method that involves a short hospital stay and placing special wires called electrode catheters into the heart using peripheral vascular access (mostly the veins in the groin). An attempt is made to create the patient's palpitations under special laboratory conditions.&nb sp;If the patient has a rhythm disorder, it is possible to reveal it during the procedure. Moreover, it is possible to eliminate such an arrhythmia with a process called "catheter ablation", which is a continuation of the same process. In other words, both diagnosis and treatment can be done at the same time.
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