Tachycardia is an abnormally fast heartbeat, or heart rhythm. An abnormal heart rhythm is called an arrhythmia. Arrhythmias result from a problem in your hearts electrical system. When tachycardia occurs in the heart's lower chambers (the ventricles), it is called ventrcular tachycardia (VT).
VT causes the heart to beat more than 100 times per minute, rather than the normal rate of 60-100 beats per minute. When VT occurs, it typically doesn't allow enough time for the ventricles to fill with blood before the blood is pumped out to the body. So less blood and oxygen are being sent to the body and - most important - to the brain. |
