-
When should I be concerned about heart palpitations?
I experience occasional heart palpitations. When should I be concerned about these and what tests might be needed to evaluate them?
1 Answer
Heart palpitations can be caused by both harmless causes and some serious underlying heart disease. Harmless causes could be due to anxiety, caffeine, strenuous exercise, panic attacks and drugsalcohol. Whereas serious underlying causes should be considered when palpitations are accompanied by dizziness, syncope, shortness of breath and chest pain. When these symptoms are present, they should be evaluated with EKG, Holter monitor, echocardiogram to assess the hearts electrical activity and identify any structural abnormalities.