Patient education: Atrial flutter (The Basics)

What is atrial flutter? — 

This is a heart problem in which the heart beats much faster than normal. It puts people at risk for stroke and other problems.

In atrial flutter, the electrical signals that control the heartbeat become abnormal. As a result, the heart's upper chambers do not pump well. Blood that should move out of these chambers gets left behind. As the blood pools, it can start to form clots. These clots can travel up to the brain through the blood vessels, and cause strokes.

Some people with atrial flutter also have something called "atrial fibrillation," or "A-fib." Both cause the same symptoms and are treated similarly.

Atrial flutter happens most often in people who have certain heart conditions (such as a heart valve problem), have lung disease, or had recent heart surgery.

What are the symptoms of atrial flutter? — 

Some people have no symptoms. When symptoms do happen, they can include:

●Feeling like your heart is beating fast, beating hard, or skipping beats

●Feeling tired

●Feeling lightheaded or dizzy

●Trouble breathing

●Chest pain

●Fainting, or feeling like you are going to faint

Is there a test for atrial flutter? — 

Yes. Your doctor or nurse will do an electrocardiogram, or "ECG," which measures the electrical activity in your heart (figure 1). This is the main way doctors can tell if you have atrial flutter.

Your doctor will also do other tests to look for heart problems that could be causing your atrial flutter. These can include:

●Lab tests – These might include tests to check your "electrolytes" and find out if your thyroid gland is working properly.

●Chest X-ray

●Echocardiogram, or "echo" – This uses sound waves to create pictures of your heart as it beats (figure 2).

●Exercise stress test – The doctor records your ECG while you exercise on a treadmill or bike (figure 3).

●Home heart monitor – This records your heartbeat over the course of hours or days.

How is atrial flutter treated? — 

Treatment depends on your symptoms and what's causing your atrial flutter.

People who have no symptoms might not need treatment. This is because atrial flutter sometimes changes back to a normal heart rhythm without treatment (after days or weeks).

When treatment is needed, it can include 1 or more of the following:

●Medicines to change the heart rhythm back to normal, or control the speed of the heartbeat

●Medicines to prevent blood clots from forming

●Cardioversion – The doctor applies an electrical shock to your heart to fix its rhythm.

●Ablation – The doctor uses energy to destroy the small part of your heart that is sending the abnormal electrical signals.

What will my life be like? — 

Many people with atrial flutter can live fairly normal lives. Still, it is important to take your medicines every day, as prescribed by your doctor. Taking your medicines helps lower the chances that your atrial flutter will cause a stroke. Even so, you should learn the signs and symptoms of a stroke (figure 4).

More on this topic

Patient education: Atrial fibrillation (The Basics)
Patient education: Medicines for atrial fibrillation (The Basics)
Patient education: Tachycardia (The Basics)
Patient education: Syncope (fainting) (The Basics)
Patient education: ECG and stress test (The Basics)
Patient education: Echocardiogram (The Basics)
Patient education: Catheter ablation for the heart (The Basics)
Patient education: Pacemakers (The Basics)
Patient education: Stroke (The Basics)
Patient education: Cardioversion (The Basics)
Patient education: Overview of heart arrhythmias (The Basics)
Patient education: Atrial flutter – Discharge instructions (The Basics)

Patient education: Atrial fibrillation (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Syncope (fainting) (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Pacemakers (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Cardioversion (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Catheter ablation for abnormal heartbeats (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Stroke symptoms and diagnosis (Beyond the Basics)