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Dr. Andrew Rynne
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Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Fainting Episodes With Rapid Heart Rate?

My wife has been having sporadic events in which she, without warning, faints for about 10 seconds, followed by her heart rate increasing to about 140 for 10 minutes or so. There does no appear to be any association to her activity or body position at the time of the event. She is slightly anemic; iron levels around 25. She is 39, in good health otherwise; approx 5 6 , 120 lbs. Cardiologist have run stress test, EKG, and X-Ray and find no problems. Any ideas as to the cause?
Mon, 3 Jun 2024
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Internal Medicine Specialist,  's  Response
Hi,

Your wife might be probably experiencing paroxysmal arrhythmias (eg: paroxysmal supra-ventricular tachycardia, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation etc.) This condition causes paroxysms of abnormal increase in heart rate leading to symptoms like syncope, fatigue, nausea, hypotension which may resolve spontaneously. This can be caused by abnormal electrical conduction pathway in the heart. It can also be caused by excess alcohol intake, obesity, caffeine, hyperthyroidism, cardiomyopathies, drugs, structural heart diseases, stress etc.

I would advise you to consult a cardiologist at the earliest for further evaluation by doing an electrophysiological study of the heart which assesses the conduction system and a Holter assessment (24 hour cardiac monitoring).

Take care. Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Regards,
Dr. Devi Venugopal Rita, Internal Medicine Specialist
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What Causes Fainting Episodes With Rapid Heart Rate?

Hi, Your wife might be probably experiencing paroxysmal arrhythmias (eg: paroxysmal supra-ventricular tachycardia, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation etc.) This condition causes paroxysms of abnormal increase in heart rate leading to symptoms like syncope, fatigue, nausea, hypotension which may resolve spontaneously. This can be caused by abnormal electrical conduction pathway in the heart. It can also be caused by excess alcohol intake, obesity, caffeine, hyperthyroidism, cardiomyopathies, drugs, structural heart diseases, stress etc. I would advise you to consult a cardiologist at the earliest for further evaluation by doing an electrophysiological study of the heart which assesses the conduction system and a Holter assessment (24 hour cardiac monitoring). Take care. Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further. Regards, Dr. Devi Venugopal Rita, Internal Medicine Specialist