What causes low heart rate? Low pulse with normal blood pressure: what to do? Big pulse

The pulse is a jerky oscillation of the arterial wall caused by the release of blood into the arteries when the heart contracts. During normal heart function, the pulse rate corresponds to the heart rate.

Normal heart rate values are considered to be between 60 and 90 beats per minute. A heart rate of less than 60 beats per minute is characterized as a slow pulse or bradycardia (it would be more correct to talk about a low pulse rate, but the expression low pulse has taken root in everyday life). Most often, a decrease in heart rate is not a cause for concern; on the contrary, it somewhat reduces the load on the heart muscle. But severe bradycardia (pulse rate below 50 beats per minute) can be evidence of various diseases, and in itself provoke the development of clinical symptoms that are unpleasant for the patient.

What reasons can cause low heart rate?

Changes in the cardiac muscle - myocardium, associated with the replacement of muscle cells with scar tissue and affecting the main “generator” of contractile impulses of the heart, the so-called. sinus node. This condition is referred to as sick sinus syndrome (SSNS).

A common cause of low heart rate is irregular heartbeat, when not all heart contractions are strong enough to be felt at the wrist.

It happens:

with frequent interruptions, extrasystoles;
atrial fibrillation;
heart blocks.

Bradycardia can also be caused by:

prolonged exposure to low temperatures;
increased activity of the parasympathetic nervous system;
an increase in intracranial pressure that occurs with cerebral edema, tumors, hemorrhage in the brain tissue and membranes, as well as meningitis;
certain medications, such as beta blockers or antiarrhythmics;
intoxication with various chemicals;
dysfunction of the thyroid gland, for example with hypothyroidism;
Infectious diseases.

In addition, a decrease in heart rate is common in trained athletes and young healthy people who are frequently exposed to physical activity. Bradycardia in such categories of people is considered a physiological norm if it does not manifest itself with any pathological symptoms.

What can slow heart rate cause?

Minor heart rhythm disturbances may not cause a person to experience any subjective complaints or sensations at all.

But a significant decrease in heart rate, less than 40 beats per minute, can manifest itself with symptoms such as:

general weakness;
Decrease or, conversely, increase in pressure;
persistent dizziness;
the appearance of cold sweat;
difficulty breathing;
fainting states.

In such situations, it is necessary to undergo examination by a cardiologist. A consultation with doctors at the CELT clinic will guarantee that all studies will be carried out as quickly as possible. And the professionalism of our specialists will allow us to accurately determine the cause of the decrease in heart rate and, if necessary, prescribe adequate treatment in a timely manner (link to the cardiologists’ schedule).

How is a low pulse diagnosed?

As mentioned above, the pulse rate reflects the heart rate. Therefore, a more accurate method of recording heart rate is electrocardiography. But if the doctor is faced with the task of only counting the pulse, and not assessing other parameters of cardiac activity, then a simpler way is palpation (palpation) of the superficial arteries of the human body. This method does not require any special training or equipment, so you can get results immediately.

ECG monitoring using a miniature recorder is even more informative. The method is also called Holter monitoring. Continuous recording of the heart rhythm makes it possible to most accurately determine the characteristics and causes of a slow heart rate.

There are several points on the human body where the pulse can be measured by palpation. The most popular method is to palpate the radial artery on the inside of the wrist. It must be remembered that it is necessary to count the number of beats on both hands, since a weakening pulse in only one of them can be a sign of a serious pathology of the cardiovascular system.

Treatment for bradycardia

It is necessary to treat not a decrease in heart rate (bradycardia), but to find out the cause of a rare pulse. Doctors at the CELT clinic know in which cases medical intervention is necessary. Therefore, the issue of diagnosis and identifying the cause comes to the fore here. In a situation where bradycardia is severe, accompanied by loss of consciousness, there is a risk of sudden cardiac arrest and there is a threat to the patient's life, we recommend implantation of a pacemaker.

The heart is the most important organ. Without it, no living organism can function. Any violations in its work lead to a deterioration in a person’s well-being and health.

Its work can be assessed by feeling the pulse. In the absence of pathology, the heart rate ranges from 60 to 100 beats per minute. When the pulse exceeds the norm, we speak of tachycardia. When the pulse, on the contrary, is less than normal, it means bradycardia. Is a low heart rate dangerous for a person? What to do in this situation? And why does it occur?

A decrease in heart rate can be observed in completely healthy people in the morning after waking up from sleep. This is a completely normal condition, since the body was at rest for several hours in a row, and is not a pathology.

Also, a decrease in heart rate below normal in people who constantly engage in sports does not include pathology. The thing is that their body has long been accustomed to stress and the heart rate does not exceed the norm, such as in a person who rarely resorts to strength training. And at rest, the trained heart muscle “relaxes,” resulting in a decrease in heart rate.

In these cases, nothing needs to be done, that is, no medication, much less surgical treatment, is needed. A low heart rate may also be a physiological feature that is inherited.

Other reasons for a decrease in heart rate include pathological changes in the functioning of the heart and pathologies not related to its functioning. For example, the first include diseases such as:

hypotension, in which the blood exerts insufficient pressure on the walls of blood vessels;
myocardial infarction, which is necrosis of the heart muscle as a result of a sudden cessation of coronary blood flow, which occurs due to damage to the venous arteries;
atherosclerosis, in which damage to the main (large) vessels occurs, leading to deterioration or partial cessation of blood circulation;
endocarditis, characterized by inflammation of the inner lining of the heart;
myocarditis, which affects the heart muscle.

Other reasons for a decrease in heart rate are completely unrelated to the work of the heart, but have a direct effect on it. Such reasons include:

taking medications that affect the functioning of the cardiovascular system;
nicotine and lead poisoning;
insufficient production of thyroid hormones;
starvation;
hypothermia;
infectious diseases.

It is worth noting that pregnant women, especially in late pregnancy, may also experience a low heart rate. This is due to the fact that the enlarged uterus puts strong pressure on the woman’s inferior genital vein. However, this does not mean that a decrease in heart rate is normal for a pregnant woman and nothing needs to be done here. The doctor must prescribe a series of tests for the pregnant woman that will reveal the presence or absence of pathological changes in the heart.

If you notice a decrease in heart rate, be sure to contact a cardiologist who will help determine the causes of the pathology and prescribe appropriate treatment.

Decreased heart rate: what is the danger?

In itself, a decrease in heart rate is not dangerous for a person, but only if small deviations from the norm occur. If the pulse drops below 40, then a person’s life is at risk, since there is a high probability of cardiac arrest or loss of consciousness as a result of oxygen deficiency in the body. This entails an increased risk of injury due to a fall.

With a slight decrease in heart rate, a person may experience symptoms such as fatigue, migraines, increased sweating, and dizziness. With a strong deviation from the norm, the symptoms are pronounced.

What to do?

A person has a low pulse, what to do in such a situation? Of course, go to a cardiologist. Only he will be able to determine the cause of the decrease in heart rate and eliminate it. And for this, a sick person will have to undergo studies such as:

Ultrasound of the heart;
coronary angiography;
daily study using a portable electrocardiograph.

If, using these diagnostic methods, abnormalities in the functioning of the heart were not detected, but a low pulse is still observed, the patient is sent to other specialists who can determine the cause of the pathology.

Treatment for low heart rate

A low heart rate is not a normal condition. Therefore, this pathology, like others, requires special treatment. A low heart rate is treated in two ways:

medicinally;
promptly.

In drug treatment, drugs are prescribed individually in each case. After all, here treatment is primarily aimed at eliminating the cause, and it may be different for each person.

As for the surgical method of treating low pulse, it is used in rare cases and most often in elderly people who have had bradycardia for several years. During the operation, the person is fitted with a pacemaker, which controls the frequency and rhythm of contractions.

If no pathology is detected during the research, the person feels well, but there is a decrease in heart rate, you can increase the pulse using the following methods:

physical cardio exercises, which help strengthen blood vessels and the heart itself;
rest;
taking vitamin complexes;
taking green tea.

Giving up bad habits also plays a very important role here. Self-treatment is not recommended, as this can lead to complications.

A rate of 30-39 beats per minute is considered a very low heart rate; this number of heartbeats poses a threat to human health. With this rhythm of the heart, the brain suffers from a lack of oxygen. A person in this state feels dizzy, weak, tired, and may faint.

Could a heart rate below 30 beats be normal?

Sinus bradycardia with a pulse rate of 30–39 per minute is an uncharacteristic condition and is rarely observed.

There are three groups of reasons for which sinus bradycardia develops, and the pulse rate ranges from 30-35 to 36-39 beats per minute, these are:

Heart diseases.
Non-cardiac diseases.
Physiological reasons (extremely rare!).

Pathological cardiac

With pathologies of the cardiovascular system, the functioning of the elements of the conduction system of the heart, which is responsible for rhythm, is disrupted. These diseases, which reduce the heart rate to 30-35 beats per minute, include:

myocarditis, endocarditis;
atherosclerosis;
the presence of post-infarction scars on the heart muscle;
myocardial infarction.

Non-cardiac pathological

The second group of causes of dangerously low heart rate includes non-cardiac pathological problems that arise at heart rates from 36-37 to 38-39 beats per minute. We list them:

imbalance of calcium and potassium in the body;
dysfunction of the thyroid gland;
starvation;
disruption of the nervous system;
abnormally high intracranial pressure due to trauma, stroke, tumors;
improper use of heart medications;
nicotine or lead poisoning.

To understand what your pulse is, just count it. At home, use a stopwatch and count the number of pulsations in the wrist vein in one minute. In the hospital, such an event is carried out with greater accuracy thanks to a procedure such as an ECG.

Electrocardiography can determine the reasons for the decrease in heart rate. In addition to the ECG, you will need to donate blood for bioanalysis to determine the amount of hormones.

To determine the causes of a rare pulse, daily ECG monitoring is required.

What to do: self-medicate at home or see a doctor?

It is not recommended to take measures to reduce a constant low heart rate at home. Treatment is usually carried out in a hospital under the supervision of doctors, and in case of emergency it will be possible to receive emergency medical care on the spot. If a critical decrease in heart rate occurs suddenly, then you should not carry out any self-medication or take any medications, but it is advisable to immediately call an ambulance and consult a doctor. Quite often, with such a rare heartbeat, it is necessary to install a pacemaker.

What tinctures can you make and take at home?

If your heart rate periodically drops, then to restore it within normal limits, it is recommended to take the following 3 proven tinctures of your choice. And we will start with lemon-garlic medicine, since it will have practically no contraindications and does not contain alcohol.

Such simple and affordable products as garlic and lemon have been used in folk medicine for quite a long time.

This lemon-garlic tincture is well suited for the gradual long-term treatment of an advanced form of bradycardia or for the prevention of low heart rate. The gradual use of this tincture will slowly but surely increase your heart rate, while having a secondary positive effect on the overall functioning of the cardiovascular system.

To prepare lemon-garlic tincture, you will need to do the following:

Pour boiling water over 10 peeled lemons;
leave for 20 minutes;
then the juice is squeezed out;
10 cloves of ground garlic are added to the squeezed lemon juice;
Next, add a liter of honey to the total mass. After which all components are thoroughly mixed and infused in a dark place for 2 weeks.

This folk remedy is taken 1 tbsp. l. 40 minutes before meals for 2 months. The tincture gradually increases the pulse rate, improves the elasticity of blood vessels, thereby removing excess stress from the heart.

Tincture of St. John's wort and hawthorn. To prepare the tincture, dry herbs are used - hawthorn, St. John's wort, Rhodiola rosea root, rose hips and cloves. Place 100 g of each component in a glass jar and add 400 ml of boiling water. They insist for an hour. Take half a glass three times a day.

Pulse is a palpable vibration of the vascular walls that is caused by the contraction of the heart muscle and the passage of a certain volume of blood. The norm is a pulse rate that ranges from sixty to eighty beats per minute. In this case, it is better to measure the parameter in the morning, soon after waking up. The values of the indicator depend on a number of reasons, including the person’s age. So, the number is 140, while in older people it drops to 60 - 65. The pulse quickens during physical activity, emotional experiences, fear, increased blood pressure, and some diseases.

It is generally accepted that a healthy person always has a weak pulse, and the lower the indicator, the better. In principle, there is some truth in this statement, but you just need to take into account that it is only true if the indicator does not go beyond the norm. So, of course, it is easier for the body when the pulse frequency is sixty rather than eighty, but values that do not reach the lower limit most often indicate the development of pathology.

Bradycardia, in which both the pulse and heart rate (HR) are excessively low, comes in several types:

Absolute- Heart rate does not change depending on external conditions, and the pulse rate is constantly low.
Relative- Heart rate does not increase sufficiently during physical activity or when body temperature rises. This condition is typical for professional athletes and occurs with traumatic brain injuries and diseases such as meningitis, typhus, etc.
Moderate- observed in children suffering from respiratory arrhythmia, with a low pulse rate detected during sleep or during deep, measured breathing.
Extracardiac vagal- characteristic of neurological disorders, kidney diseases, diseases of other internal organs, but not cardiopathologies.

Why does your heart rate drop?

The causes of bradycardia can be physiological, when a slowdown in the pulse rate is a natural reaction of the body to changes in external conditions and returns to normal in a short time. These factors include:

Hypothermia - if a person is in cold water for a long time or freezes in the cold.
Stressful situations.
Increased physical activity.
Poor nutrition - with constant consumption of insufficient amounts of food, poor diet, lack of nutritional compounds.
Failure to comply with the specified medication regimen (especially in the case of an overdose of antipyretics), long-term use of β-blockers.
Hypoxia caused by low physical activity and insufficient exposure to fresh air.
Consumption of alcoholic beverages and drugs.

It can be due to both physiological reasons and the development of a pathological process. In this case, changes in the indicator are not a separate disease, but a symptom of the underlying disorder, and it can be normalized only after the cause is eliminated.

Pathological bradycardia is one of the symptoms of such disorders:

Cardiopathologies - ischemia, myocarditis, cardiosclerosis, post-infarction condition, atherosclerotic lesion of the coronary arteries.
Diseases of the nervous system.
Endocrine disorders.
Severe intoxication.
Infectious and inflammatory disorders.
Severe pain syndrome.
Traumatic lesions in the chest and neck area.
Hypotension.
Excessive stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system.
Massive bleeding.
Age-related cardiac disorders.

How does the violation manifest itself?

A rare pulse indicates improper functioning of the heart muscle, disruption of the normal rhythm, and disturbances in impulse conduction in the sinus node. As a result, the intensity of blood flow decreases, internal organs and tissues receive insufficient amounts of oxygen and nutritional compounds, which leads to the development of hypoxia and a number of diseases.

With absolute bradycardia, a person does not experience painful symptoms and may not even suspect the presence of such a disorder for many years. Other types of the disorder differ in the following manifestations:

Frequent severe headache and dizziness.
Fainting state.
Nausea, attacks of vomiting.
High fatigue, weakness.
Decreased blood pressure.
Arrhythmic shock.
Difficulty breathing, shortness of breath.
Decreased short-term memory, inability to concentrate, absent-mindedness.

How to treat the disorder?

Now let's figure out what to do if your heart rate is low. Firstly, it must be borne in mind that treatment is carried out only when a person experiences pain or bradycardia is caused by some disease.

If weak blood pulsation is due to the influence of negative external factors, then they need to be eliminated. In severe cases, the doctor takes into account the characteristics of the underlying disease and uses the following medications:

Izadrin.
Atropine.
Isoproterenol.
Alupent.

In case of contraindication to taking Izadrin or Atropine, the patient is prescribed a tablet form of Ephedrine hydrochloride or Ipratropium bromide.

It is carried out only in case of diagnosing a violation of the conduction of impulses in the heart. If the parameter decreases as a result of other disorders, then treatment is aimed at eliminating the underlying disease, after which the pulse rate returns to normal over time.

If the cause of a severe form of bradycardia is a violation of cardiac conduction, the patient is urgently admitted to the clinic, where the necessary treatment is carried out aimed at restoring cardiac activity. If drug therapy is ineffective, cardiac pacing is used, in which a device that normalizes heart rate is transplanted under the patient's skin.

If the painful symptoms are mild, tinctures of ginseng, guarana, eleutherococcus, and belladonna-based preparations are effective. In addition, energy drinks containing caffeine, strong coffee or tea normalize the condition. It is also recommended to apply mustard plaster to the chest area or take a warm foot bath for fifteen minutes.

Folk remedies

To normalize a slow pulse, the following traditional medicines are used:

Add half a kilo of chopped walnuts, two hundred and fifty grams of sugar, four lemons cut into small pieces and a liter of boiling water to one hundred and fifty milliliters of sesame oil. Take one tablespoon in the morning, afternoon and evening before meals.
Mix equal parts of radish juice and honey, take one teaspoon three times a day.
Pour sixty grams of dry pine branches with three hundred milliliters of vodka and leave for ten days. Thirty minutes before meals, take twenty drops of the product.
Rosehip decoction - boil ten berries in half a liter of water for fifteen minutes. Cool the mixture, pass the berries through a sieve and add three teaspoons of honey. Before each meal, drink half a glass of the decoction.
Dilute forty drops of motherwort juice in a tablespoon of water.

Even a person who is far from medicine and not very attentive to his own anatomy quite often hears the word “pulse”. Only a few people monitor their heart rate. As a rule, one remembers the pulse only during high physical activity, which already “knocks in the temples” and in the ears. But in vain, the pulse is an excellent indicator of the state of the body’s cardiovascular system.

The pulse, namely the exact number of heart beats per minute, transmitted as if through wires through large vessels, is one of the most important indicators of the functioning of the main organ of human life - the heart. It is sad that most people remember the pulse only during periodic medical examinations or when cardiovascular diseases have already begun.

The pulse is a jerky vibration of the arterial wall of blood vessels associated with the release of blood into the arteries during constant heart contractions. If the heart is healthy, then the pulse rate is quantitatively equal to the frequency of its contractions. In clinical studies, arterial, venous and capillary pulses are distinguished.

What is the normal value of a person's pulse?

First of all, you should know that heart rate standards for children and adults are different. With age, the average value of a person’s pulse decreases, until old age, and only after 60–80 can the normal pulse increase by several beats per minute.

Interval A-B - Anacrota, B-C - Katacrota, the arrow indicates Dicrotic rise

The medical norm for heart rate for an adult is considered to be a range from 60 to 90 beats per minute. Heart rates below 60 beats per minute in people over 16 years of age qualify as a slow pulsation, called bradycardia, or colloquially “low heart rate.”

A decrease in heart rate below 50 beats per minute is a clear symptom of bradycardia and a person should definitely have their body diagnosed. If you feel well and all vital signs are within normal limits, then a decrease in heart rate simply indicates a decrease in the load on the heart. But a decrease in heart rate after 50 beats per minute requires consulting a doctor to confirm or exclude diseases associated with bradycardia.

Causes of low heart rate - bradycardia

Sinus bradycardia is understood as a change in pulse / heart rate in which the heart rate decreases to 50 - 30 beats per minute, due to a decrease in the automation of the sinus node.

Sick sinus syndrome (SSNS) is a clinical and pathogenetic concept that combines a number of heart rhythm disorders caused by a decrease in the functional capacity of the sinus node. SSSU occurs with bradycardia/bradyarrhythmia and, as a rule, with the presence of concomitant ectopic arrhythmias.

Bradycardia (low heart rate) can be caused by:

sclerotic changes in the myocardium affecting the sinus node;
prolonged hypothermia of the body;
increased intracranial pressure with cerebral edema, meningitis, tumors, hemorrhages in the brain tissue and membranes;
increased activity of the parasympathetic nervous system;
certain medications: beta blockers or antiarrhythmics;
dysfunction of the thyroid gland, possibly due to hypothyroidism;
intoxication with certain chemicals in production or treatment;
long fasting
infection.

A decrease in heart rate is often observed in strong young people and trained athletes, who often take on heavy physical activity, as if rocking the heart and arteries. If the bradycardia associated with this cause does not manifest itself in any other way, a normal feeling of health remains, it can be considered a physiological norm. There is no particular reason to worry, but monitor your heart rate regularly.

How does a slow heart rate manifest itself?

A decrease in heart rate to a low frequency may not be felt at all by a person and, naturally, no health complaints will arise. But a decrease in heart rate below 40 beats per minute can lead to symptoms such as:

general weakness;
the appearance of cold sweat;
persistent dizziness;
difficulty breathing;
fainting state.

If you find that you have a low heart rate with obvious symptoms of bradycardia, you should immediately contact a cardiologist or therapist. Under the supervision of experienced and qualified specialists using the latest cardiac analytics, you will be given an accurate diagnosis, promptly prescribed correct treatment and observation, and, if necessary, hospitalized until normal health is restored.

Diagnosis of bradycardia/low heart rate

The simplest and fastest method that gives immediate results is the classic feeling of the pulse by pressing the artery on the wrist or neck. However, a more accurate examination can be carried out only with the help of electrocardiography, which records the work of the heart in the smallest detail with a corresponding record of the cardiogram, which is stored in the patient’s medical history and may be useful in the future to obtain a more complete picture.

Diagnosis of bradycardia can be carried out using more modern methods, for example, using a miniature ECG recorder, which provides a continuous recording of the heart rhythm, which in turn allows you to most informatively see the causes and features of the slowdown of the heart, depending on the time of day, loads, etc.

How to treat bradycardia?

Treating bradycardia at home on your own is highly NOT recommended! If you are really going to treat bradycardia, and not self-medicate with questionable results, then you have a direct route to the cardiology center or to the therapeutic department of any hospital. First of all, doctors must give you a qualified diagnosis, find out the reasons that caused the low pulse, and determine the degree and method of medical intervention.

If necessary, the hospital will prescribe appropriate procedures and medications, and health workers will determine whether you need hospitalization or medical examination is sufficient. They will prescribe an appropriate mode of work, sleep and rest, active and passive.

In severe forms of bradycardia associated with sudden loss of consciousness, with the risk of sudden cardiac arrest, doctors may recommend implantation of a pacemaker, which will help your heart serve for a long time and stably.