Suggest treatment for rapid heart rate
Patient: Hi there! So as of recently, maybe in the past two weeks or so, every time my heart beats faster than it normals does, it has this weird feeling to it and if it's really quiet you can hear it squeaking. For example, if I stayed in bed all day and get up to go downstairs to the kitchen, when I get downstairs I hear the squeaking with every heart beat. I'm turning 17 in a week so I assumed it wasn't any serious heart condition but it wouldn't hurt to be 210% sure. Doctor: Dear Patient,     Thank you very much for your question. If your heart rate is 100 or above beats per minute,  it is called as tachycardia or your heart is beating faster than normal. There are many causes for tachycardia.  1. Anxiety and severe stress.2. Hyperthyroidism.3. Anemia.4. Damage to heart tissue during heart disease.5. Smoking and Alcohol intoxication.6. Fever  etc.  Also, there are many types of tachycardia,too.  Atrial Fibrillation, Atrial flutter, Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) are some of them. In order to diagnose these conditions and differentiate them taking an ECG test is mandatory. Therefore, in your case, I would recommend you to consult your family doctor and take an ECG. Also, I would recommend you to do a thyroid test because many young individuals those who have atrial fibrillation have hyperthyroidism.  Do not worry.  Therefore,see a doctor soon and check your thyroid and do an ECG. If your conditions are related to anxiety or severe stress, your doctor will direct you to a Psychiatrist.  Vagal maneuvers can slow down your heart rate.  Putting an ice pack on face , coughing are examples for Vagal maneuvers which can slow down your heart rate during palpitations. Anyway, I again do not recommend you to rely on those temporary solutions. Seeing a physician and observing his or recommendations is the best solution. I hope that I answered your question.Good Luck!Dr. Dinesh Nuwan Weerasinghe. MD