Guide To The Major Types Of Tachycardia

Ventricular Tachycardia

Ventricular tachycardia occurs when an individual's heart rate is fast and abnormal. Rather than being localized to the atria, this heart condition starts in the ventricles. These are the lower chambers of the heart. In this type of tachycardia, a patient will have at least three heartbeats in a row that go at a rate of at least one hundred beats per minute. Rather than spanning minutes, this condition only tends to last for a few seconds. In cases where ventricular tachycardia does last for more than a couple of seconds, it might be life-threatening. 

The primary type of ventricular tachycardia is nonsustained. However, a sustained type occurs when the heart rhythm continues for over thirty seconds. The problem is that the rapidity of this heartbeat does not let the heart fill up with blood. Thus, the blood flow to the body is compromised. Ventricular tachycardia can begin in one of two ways. One is when there is an abnormal circuit in the muscle itself that is activated from outside. The other is when the same abnormal circuit is activated by itself.

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