Once again, we’re dealing with the natural pacemaker of the
heart. This part of the heart tells the rest of the heart when to contract
(beat), and when this part of the heart doesn’t do that job, certain types
of arrhythmia can occur. Arrhythmia is just another word for irregular
heartbeat. Usually cardioversion is used to treat two types of arrhythmias:
atrial fibrillation and tachycardia. Atrial fibrillation is when the
“natural pacemaker” of the heart doesn’t tell the rest of the heart to beat
on time and it causes the beat to be irregular, erratic and usually rapid.
Tachycardia is the technical term for rapid heart rate. These both can
cause annoying symptoms such as dizziness, palpitations (feels like an
“extra” heart beat), fainting, and sometimes even chest pain.
Cardioversion is done as an outpatient
procedure in the hospital and a sedative is given to you to allow you to
sleep during the procedure. Your cardiologist will place electrodes on your
chest and will use an electrical shock through those patches to try to
restore the normal rhythm of the heart. There are no incisions and you will
be released a few hours after the procedure.
