The beating of the heart is made possible by special cells in the heart that can generate and transmit electrical excitation. The excitation begins with regular impulses in the sinus node, is then transmitted via the atria to the atrioventricular node and then via electrical pathways to the ventricles, where it stimulates them to beat and pump. However, this can lead to disturbances in the normal heart rhythm.
This can lead to a slowing of the heartbeat if there is an underlying disease of the sinus or AV node. This may then cause dizziness, poor performance or even sudden loss of consciousness loss of consciousness can result.
Additional conduction pathways in the heart or structural changes in the heart muscle tissue following illnesses such as a heart attack, myocarditis or cardiac insufficiency, as well as muscle cells that cause extra beats outside the normal rhythm, can lead to rapid cardiac arrhythmias. These then become noticeable through palpitations, palpitations or stumbling. It is particularly important to find out whether these are harmless or dangerous rapid arrhythmias. These can also lead to unconsciousness and, in the worst case, to sudden cardiac death.
If you have experienced symptoms of this kind or if your cardiologist has already diagnosed you with a cardiac arrhythmia, we would like to provide you with the best possible advice and care in our department, from differentiated diagnostics through to the selection of the optimum treatment options.
Please bring a valid referral slip from your doctor in private practice and all relevant previous findings (doctor's letters, ECGs, long-term ECGs, laboratory findings) with you to the agreed appointment.
It is particularly important for us to obtain a detailed medical history. You can describe your symptoms in a consultation with the relevant doctor in the rhythm clinic and the previous findings you have brought with you will be analysed. Further examinations may be necessary to identify the type of arrhythmia. If the consultation and the available examination results indicate the need for drug therapy, an electrophysiological examination (EPU) and, if necessary, catheter ablation or a pacemaker or defibrillator implantation, we will provide you with comprehensive information about these therapies.
For an EPU or catheter ablation, as well as for a pacemaker or ICD implantation, a short inpatient stay of 2-3 days is required. Preparations for the procedure are made during the outpatient visit so that the inpatient admission can usually take place directly on the day of the procedure.
If your attending internist or cardiologist has already diagnosed your cardiac arrhythmia, you will only need to come to our rhythm clinic briefly to prepare for your inpatient stay (information, blood sampling if necessary) to ensure that your inpatient stay runs smoothly.
In addition to the diagnostic findings, we offer further examination methods in our outpatient clinic:
- Resting ECG
- Exercise ECG and spiroergometry
- Long-term ECG and long-term blood pressure measurement
- Portable external event recorders
- Drug provocation tests (adenosine test, ajmaline test)
- Tilt table examination
- Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (cardio-MRI)