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Heart Flutter

A heart flutter, or arrhythmia, can be worrying, but it often happens when there is no other sign of heart disorder. It is quite common in older people. Symptoms can include heart palpitations, dizziness, fainting or breathlessness.

  1. Features

    • Heart, or atrial, flutter takes place when the atria's contractions happen so quickly that the atrial walls shudder. It can be a sign of rheumatic heart disease, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, alcohol abuse, an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism) or a birth defect of the heart.

    Identification

    • Doctors can check to see if someone has a heart flutter through electrocardiography. Treatment is usually through drugs, such as beta-blockers, which can help slow down the contractions. Occasionally doctors use electric shocks to get the heart rhythm back to normal.

    Prevalence

    • Atrial flutter is thought to affect 900 people per million. Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair suffered with the condition.

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