Tachycardia

Tachycardia can be triggered by:

• Stress
• Anxiety and panic attacks
• Excessive caffeine or alcohol
• Nicotine
• Stimulant medications (weight loss pills, cough and cold medicine)
• Fever

It is of great concern when the condition is caused by cardiac arrhythmias, which is a short-circuit in the electrical impulses controlling your heartbeat, resulting in the heart to beat too rapidly.

Other forms of tachycardia are:

Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT)

This is a prevalent arrhythmia in young adults. This is experienced as a sudden burst of rapid heartbeats that begin and end abruptly, lasting for seconds or hours. SVT is usually not life-threatening.

Ventricular tachycardia (VT)

Ventricular tachycardia is a very rapid, but regular heartbeat of 100 beats or more a minute occurring in the lower chambers (ventricles) of the heart.

Sustained heart palpitations lasting more than 30 seconds are considered a medical emergency. They could indicate pre-existing heart diseases such as coronary artery disease or heart valve disorders.