[CDHart]

"losing intractable tachycardia... "

Is tachycardia the same thing as atrial fibrillation?

Carolyn

[BibChr]

Um... er... I don't know. It's what my doctors have called it since I first noticed it in the '70's. It's where your heart rate can more or less double, and hold; and the longer it holds, the more unpleasant things happen.

There are some physical things you can do to stop it, most of the time -- which in a state of morbid obesity are themselves extremely unpleasant. And which weren't even working for me, towards the last.

Now, my heart's sped up once or twice, and all I've had to do is draw a deep breath and hold it hard for a moment, and it slows right down.

Dan

[Smokin' Joe]

I'm not a doctor, but I'll take a crack at it. Tachycardia is a faster than normal heartbeat. It may be caused by a variety of factors, eiither from electrolyte imbalances, valve damage, drug effects, blood loss, or even stress. Up to a point, the heart is still functional as a pump, beyond that, cavitation like effects occur and efficiency declines rapidly.

Ventricular fibrillation occurs when the muscles in the ventricle are not working together; the nerve impulses which control the muscles have them contracting out of synch. The result is a loss in the heart's ability to pump blood, and can be fatal.