Presentation
- Palpitations
- A pounding pulse.
- Dizziness
- Lightheaded.
- Syncope
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Throat tightness
- Sweating
(WebMD)
Causes
- Faulty electrical connections in the heart
- Certain medicines (Ex: Digoxin, Theophylline)
- Family history of Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome
- Surgery
- Drinking large amounts of caffeine or alcohol
- Stress or emotional upset
- Smoking
(Kenny T. 2013)
& (WebMD)
Investigations
- Physical examinations
- Electrocardiogram - Measures the heart's electrical activity and can record SVT episodes.
- Chest X-ray
- Echocardiogram (ECG)
(WebMD)
 |
| Figure 1 : An ECG of a SVT patient Source - www.practicalclinicalskills.com |
Stepwise Management
- It is possible to stop an episode of SVT by the patient himself by drinking a cold glass of water, holding the breath or putting the face into cold water.
- If the patient cannot rescue himself fast-acting medications are given by injection into a vein to stop an SVT.
- Verapamil - An alternative medicine if adenosine is not advised or is not effective (Ex: Some people with asthma cannot have adenosine.
- Electrical cardio version - Electric shock treatment to reset the heart rhythm.
- Prescribe a medicine to take when the SVT occurs.
- Advice the patient about how he can slow his heart rate on their own by coughing, gagging, or putting their face in ice-cold water. These are called vagal maneuvers.
- If the patient experiences episodes of SVT very often, advise him to take medicine every day to prevent the episodes or slow your heart rate or try catheter ablation which destroys a tiny part of the heart that causes the problem.
(WebMD)
REFERENCES
WebMD. (nd.)
WebMD. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/tc/supraventricular-tachycardia-overview [Accessed 27th April 15].
Kenny T. 2013.
Patient.Co.uk [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.patient.co.uk/health/supraventricular-tachycardia [Accessed 27th April 15].
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