A 36-year-old man with intolerable palpitations (very high heart rate) recently underwent treatment for his condition. He has since resumed his normal routine, authorities at the Sri Ramachandra Medical Centre (SRMC) said.
The man’s heart rate was consistently over 200 beats per minute, and he was experiencing near blackouts. He did not respond to emergency intravenous medications. He had to be administered external defibrillation, where heavy energy is delivered to the patient’s chest wall to restore the heart’s normal rhythm. An evaluation revealed that the patient suffered from arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC), a condition in the lower right chamber of the heart that is caused by a structural defect. This occurs in one in 3,000 people. The defect causes a sudden rise in heart rate, sometimes leading to death.
For such patients, installation of a special pacemaker (an implantable cardiac defibrillator) is necessary, said cardiologists Vinod Kumar and Preetam Krishnamurthy, who treated the patient. The implant, as per international guidelines, delivers a small current directly to the heart whenever the heart rate rises beyond a particular limit. The special pacemaker was procured and installed under the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme.
S. Thanikachalam, Chairman and Director of the Cardiac Care Centre at SRMC, said the government’s swift action enabled them to treat the patient and help him return to his routine.
