• Book an Appointment
Email: pa@drboonlim.co.uk Call Us 0208 187 9888
HealthFlex
×
  • COVID19
  • Home
  • About Dr. Lim
  • Heart Conditions
    • Palpitations
    • Ectopic beats
    • Atrial Fibrillation
    • Atrial Flutter
    • Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT)
    • Vasovagal Syncope
  • Reviews
    • Case Study
  • Book Appointment
  • Resources
    • Blog
    • Videos
    • Books
  • Contact

Does Atrial Fibrillation cause Heart Failure

Does Atrial Fibrillation cause Heart Failure
July 12, 2018MedicalMedical ArticlesAtrial FibrillationHeart Failure

Does Atrial Fibrillation cause Heart Failure? Or does heart failure cause AF?

The answer is both question is yes!

Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, and a strong risk factor for developing AF is the presence of heart failure. With advances in cardiovascular medicine, particular in the effective treatment of coronary artery disease, including rapidly-treated heart attacks, the prevalence of heart failure in an aging population is increasing.

There are common risk factors for development of heart failure and AF. These include ischaemic heart disease, diabetes and hypertension. However the presence of AF itself is a risk factor for developing heart failure, with a three-fold increase in HF developing in patients who have AF. Likewise, patients who are in established heart failure also have a much higher likelihood of developing AF, which in turn reduces the heart’s pumping efficiency, which leads to further deterioration of symptoms of heart failure, including shortness of breath, dizziness and fatigue.

How do you diagnose AF in heart failure?

In patients with existing heart failure, development of palpitations which feel like irregular or rapid heartbeats, as well as worsening symptoms of shortness of breath or fatigue should prompt a pulse check. If you feel an irregularly irregular heartbeat, then you should suspect Atrial Fibrillation. The diagnosis of AF can be confirmed by means of a 12 lead electrocardiogram (ECG). However, some patients with heart failure also have pacemakers or implantable cardiac defibrillators (ICD). If this is the case, you should normally be able to contact your pacemaker team who perform testing on your device to check if the device shows that you are in AF. The third way you could check is to get a mobile ECG recording device (i.e. AliveCor) which can link directly to your mobile phone providing a direct recording of your heart rate and rhythm.

What do you do if you have heart failure and suspect you may have developed AF?

Get a diagnosis as soon as possible.

If you have a health care professional that you can make contact with, such as a heart failure nurse, a local pacemaker clinic, or your GP, please arrange to see them soonest possible and confirm your rhythm with a 12 lead ECG.

Prompt treatment of newly-diagnosed AF may help prevent deterioration of heart failure symptoms.

What are treatment options of AF in heart failure?

AF should be treated in the usual way – the most important consideration if stroke prevention, and because heart failure is a risk factor for stroke, your doctor would normally recommend that you start on anticoagulation, to prevent blood clots from forming in the heart which may lead to a stroke.

The second consideration is rate control – your doctor will check on your heart rate and usually recommend drugs to control your heart rate (most commonly a beta blocker such as bisoprolol). Depending on the duration of AF, and the size of your heart, may well recommend a rhythm control strategy, in which your doctor may choose to perform a cardioversion (electric shock to restart the heart) or a catheter ablation procedure.

A third option – which is only be relevant if you already have a pacemaker is for your doctor to perform an ablation procedure of your AV node, which is the main electrical conduit between the  atrial (top) chambers and the ventricles (bottom) chambers of the heart. In this instance, ablation of the AV node will disconnect the top from the bottom chambers of the heart, making it impossible for your heart to beat quickly on its own accord in AF. In this instance, patients then become dependent on their pacemaker for normal heart functioning.

 

If you’d like to be assessed by an expert in AF, please contact Dr. Boon Lim – Best Private Consultant Cardiologist in London.

Add Comment Cancel


Recent Posts

  • Autonomic Dysfunction in Long Covid
  • Impact of Daily Chronic Stress on Heart Health
  • How To Manage Symptoms Of Low Blood Pressure
  • Atrial Fibrillation: What Does It Feel Like And How Can It Be Treated?
  • Case Study – How Atrial Fibrillation Patient’s Changed Life

Categories

  • case study
  • Medical Articles
  • News
  • Uncategorized

Keywords

Atrial Fibrillation Diabetes Diet Exercise Faint Fitness Health Heart Failure Hydration Medical Obesity Sleep Sleep Apnea Sleep Apnoea Vasovagal Syncope

VOTED BEST CARDIOLOGIST LONDON

Dr Lim is an experienced Consultant Cardiologist and Electrophysiologist. He is the clinical lead for the nationally-renowned Imperial Syncope Diagnostic Service based at Hammersmith Hospital London.

+44 0208 187 9888

pa@drboonlim.co.uk

One Welbeck Heart Health

Hammersmith Hospital

Bupa Cromwell Hospital

LATEST NEWS

  • Autonomic Dysfunction in Long Covid Apr 5

    In the wake of Covid, a significant proportion of patients...

  • Impact of Daily Chronic Stress on Heart Health Oct 19

    Dr Lim discusses with Luke Mintz, from the Daily Telegraph,...

  • How To Manage Symptoms Of Low Blood Pressure Oct 1

    In this video, Dr Lim speaks with Dr Melanie Dani,...

Copyright ©2020 All Rights Reserved | DISCLAIMER | Privacy Policy
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Go to mobile version