Bradyarrhythmia - Slow Heart Rhythm Overview
A healthy heart beats with a regular rate and rhythm, not too slow or too fast, to keep blood pumping and keep you healthy. These rhythms are controlled by special electrical spots in your heart tissue. Sometimes, things go wrong in the heart's electrical pathways, which causes the electrical pathway to slow. This results in the heart beating too slowly, or unevenly. This is a condition called bradyarrhythmia. Brady means slow. Arrhythmia means irregular heart rhythm.
Because the heart pumps slower, less blood is pumped to the body and brain. Slow heartbeats can cause symptoms such as a fatigue, dizziness, lightheadedness, fainting or near fainting. If the heart beats too slow a pacemaker is needed to speed up the heart rhythm. A pacemaker is a small electronic device that helps the heart's electrical system beat at the right pace to meet the needs of the body.
