Description and Possible Medical Problems
If you’re under 50 with a heart rate to match, it means you’re in excellent health and physically fit. If, however, you have a history of heart disease and you’re taking beta-blockers—which deliberately slow the heart rate—as long as you have no other symptoms, you don’t have to worry.
A slow heart rate in an elderly relative is cause for concern, however. Also, a slow heart rate may be discovered only in the course of an exam for possible heart failure, especially when it’s accompanied by shortness of breath or a sudden fall.
If an elderly relative has a heart fate under 50, her doctor will use an electrocardiogram and echocardiogram (see pages 239-241 for a description of these tests) to evaluate the health of her heart. If the slow heart tate is not caused by beta-blockers, she may need to have a pacemaker surgically placed.
A pacemaker is a small device that keeps the heart beating. After a pacemaker—a small generator that measures about four inches square—is placed under the collarbone with local anesthesia, it normally takes less than a week to fully recover from the procedure; the pain is usually minimal and can be treated with aspirin or Tylenol. Pacemakers are totally safe; their batteries almost never need to be replaced, and they have been responsible for saving thousands of lives. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to have had a heart attack to require a pacemaker, though people who have had a heart attack still receive the majority of pacemakers to forestall potential problems with the rhythms of the heart.
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