Atrial fibrillation is a serious medical condition that requires proper and timely treatment to prevent further risks.
By: Mariana Mestizo Hernandez
The atrial fibrillation or atrial, is an irregular and often very fast heart rhythm also known as an arrhythmia, which can cause blood clots in the heart. Atrial fibrillation increases the risk of stroke, heart failure, and other heart-related complications. In the Puerto Rican population there is a high incidence of the disease because cardiovascular diseases are the first cause of death.
In this regard, Dr. Rafael Rivera, an interventional cardiologist, explained to the Journal of Medicine and Public Health what this heart condition is regarding, “the heart has the ability to beat in a synchronized manner when these abnormal circuits are created in different parts of heart causes the heart to get out of the regular rhythm and the heartbeat normally speeds up.
What are the symptoms of atrial fibrillation?
“The patient can present a range of symptoms palpitations, dizziness, sweating, shortness of breath and that has long-term complications such as clots forming in the heart and these clots dislodge and reach any part of the body that may be one of them. the most alarming signs”, explained Dr. Rivera.
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The episodes of atrial fibrillation They can appear, disappear or be persistent. Despite this, the condition itself is not usually life-threatening, however, it is a serious medical condition that requires proper and timely treatment to prevent further risks.
For this reason, Dr. Francisco Pérez Gil, electrophysiologist, clarified why these symptoms can appear, “The main problem of heart rhythm is electrical, with the atrial fibrillation the normality of the rhythm becomes chaotic, electrically there is a disorganization which leads to the ventricle, which is the final pump, to the heart causing all these symptoms”.
Risk factors for atrial fibrillation
There are several factors that can increase the risk of atrial fibrillation, for this reason Dr. Edwin Molina, fellowship in cardiology, explained which are the main ones, “There are some that can be controlled and others that cannot, obesity can cause sleep apnea dream that in turn can produce atrial fibrillationadvanced age, being older than 65 years, smoking, hypertension, diabetes and patients who have had cardiovascular surgery.
There are other types of risk factors for suffering from this condition that depend on whether you belong to the male or female sex “Fibrillation increases the probability of having a stroke five times in men and women have a greater possibility of suffering a stroke, for That is why early diagnosis is important”, explained Dr. Pérez Gil.
(See also: Catheter ablation, the innovative technology of the Cardiovascular Center of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean)
Treatment
Science continues to evolve in order to treat high-risk diseases, which has helped several people with serious conditions to live a “normal” life, controlling the symptoms of their conditions. In the case of atrial fibrillation, it is important to clarify that not all the patients receive the same treatment and, first of all, it is necessary to rule out which patients are candidates for anticoagulants, since they do not all receive them in the same way. “You have to individualize the treatment for each patient, depending on the condition of each person,” Rivera said.
Also, having a balanced diet and a healthy life can reduce the risk of suffering from this condition, however, “it is not synonymous that it will never happen” concluded Dr. Molina.
The importance of the San Lucas Ponce Episcopal Medical Center in the fight once morest atrial fibrillation.
Since its inception, the center has been in charge of ensuring the health of Puerto Ricans and has not been the exception in terms of treatment of atrial fibrillation “We were pioneers in invasive treatments for atrial fibrillations and it is a relatively new science. To give you an idea, in 2009 we did the first ablation of atrial fibrillation in Puerto Rico, ablation means percutaneous burning, we enter the patient’s veins to the areas of the heart that is produced by this lesion under cryoablation (cold)” assured the specialist Pérez.
In the same way, they have a wide range of medications and treatments that ensure the management of this condition that, although there is no cure with the proper treatment, can be overcome.
