Premature atrial contraction

"Skipped beat" redirects here. For other uses, see Skipped beat (disambiguation).
Premature atrial contraction
Other namesSupraventricular extra systole (SVES), Supraventricular ectopy (SVE)
Two PACs with a compensatory pause seen on an EKG rhythm strip. A "skipped beat" occurs and rhythm resumes 2 P-to-P intervals after the last normal sinus beat.
SpecialtyCardiology, electrophysiology Edit this on Wikidata

Premature atrial contraction (PAC), also known as atrial premature complexes (APC) or atrial premature beats (APB), are a common cardiac dysrhythmia characterized by premature heartbeats originating in the atria. While the sinoatrial node typically regulates the heartbeat during normal sinus rhythm, PACs occur when another region of the atria depolarizes before the sinoatrial node and thus triggers a premature heartbeat,[1] in contrast to escape beats, in which the normal sinoatrial node fails, leaving a non-nodal pacemaker to initiate a late beat.

The exact cause of PACs is unclear; while several predisposing conditions exist, single isolated PACs commonly occur in healthy young and elderly people. Elderly people that get PACs usually don't need any further attention besides follow ups due to unclear evidence.[2][3]

PACs are often completely asymptomatic and may be noted only with Holter monitoring, but occasionally they can be perceived as a skipped beat or a jolt in the chest. In most cases, no treatment other than reassurance is needed for PACs, although medications such as beta blockers can reduce the frequency of symptomatic PACs.[4]

  1. ^ US 5181511, Nickolls, Peter; Lu, Richard M. T. & Collins, Kenneth A., "Apparatus and method for antitachycardia pacing using a virtual electrode", published Jan 26, 1993 
  2. ^ Brodsky M, Wu D, Denes P, Kanakis C, Rosen KM (March 1977). "Arrhythmias documented by 24 hour continuous electrocardiographic monitoring in 50 male medical students without apparent heart disease". Am. J. Cardiol. 39 (3): 390–95. doi:10.1016/S0002-9149(77)80094-5. PMID 65912.
  3. ^ Folarin VA, Fitzsimmons PJ, Kruyer WB (September 2001). "Holter monitor findings in asymptomatic male military aviators without structural heart disease". Aviat Space Environ Med. 72 (9): 836–38. PMID 11565820.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).