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Palpitation in pregnancy

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
 
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Bearing a child is a special and significant stage in the life of every woman. During this period, the tempo of the functioning of all systems of the woman's body is increasing. Therefore, the cases when the heartbeat during pregnancy changes its rhythm is quite frequent.

If the number of beats per minute exceeds a hundred, then doctors say about increased heart rate, that is, tachycardia.

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Causes of heartbeat during pregnancy

The optimal pulse rate is individual for each person and is adjusted depending on his age, complexion (presence or absence of extra pounds), physical condition (health and attitude to sport - loads), diet. But bearing a child is a special condition of the body, so the causes of heartbeat during pregnancy can be quite different, some of them, to date, have not received a physiological explanation.

Hormonal restructuring of the woman's body. During this period, the amount of the hormone increases, which affects the heart rate.

  • Volumetric blood loss.
  • Stress.
  • Thyroid dysfunction.
  • Pulmonary embolism - a sharp overlap with the embolus of the pulmonary artery.
  • Depression and anxiety.
  • Infectious diseases that cause fever.
  • Bronchial asthma.
  • Detachment of placental tissue.
  • Manifestation of an ectopic pregnancy.
  • Sepsis - an inflammatory process caused by the ingestion of pathogenic bacteria or unicellular fungi. People call such a pathology a "blood poisoning".
  • A side effect of taking certain medicines.
  • The cause of tachycardia can be a large intake of vitamin and a response of the body in the form of allergic manifestations.
  • Lead to tachycardia is also capable of excess body weight of the future mother.
  • Coffee.
  • Smoking is both active and passive.
  • Alcohol and drugs.
  • Anemia.

As can be seen from the above - the risk factors that can cause heartbeat during pregnancy are many and they are different. Although the doctors say that the increased heart rate is the norm during the period when the fetus is carring, but in the case of a tachycardia, it is still necessary to count your pulse and inform the obstetrician - the gynecologist who is leading the pregnancy - of its results.

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Symptoms of heartbeat during pregnancy

Pregnancy is an additional burden on the entire body of a woman, including her cardiovascular system. Most often, the symptoms of heartbeat during pregnancy are expressed in mild forms of their manifestation, but they can also be symptomatic of more serious diseases.

  • In the chest area, the pregnant woman begins to feel pain.
  • The heart begins to pound so that it's easy to "jump out of the chest."
  • There are signs of dizziness.
  • A woman can feel the loss of sensitivity of the limbs, numbness.
  • The head starts to hurt.
  • The woman feels fast fatigue, not even tolerating small loads.
  • There is shortness of breath.
  • Short-term fainting is common.

If this symptom occurs, you should notify your doctor immediately. He will appoint the necessary studies and, if necessary, will conduct adequate treatment.

Heart palpitations during pregnancy

Tachycardia - this is an increased number of heart beats per minute, manifested due to excessive physical, emotional stress or disease occurring in the body. A rapid heartbeat during pregnancy, manifested in mild form, is more a norm than pathology, because during this period the heart should provide sufficient blood flow to the uterus, providing the entire body of the woman and the fetus with nutrients and microelements. If a woman feels that her "pump" starts to move more rhythmically, it is worth using quite simple tips: •

  • It is necessary to sit down in a comfortable chair and relax, after thinking about something pleasant.
  • Easy gymnastics for pregnant women, elements of yoga and meditation. Any representative of the fair sex can find her relaxation, which will help relieve tension, bringing the rhythm of the heart in order.
  • It is necessary to take a sufficient amount of fluid, so that the body maintains a normal water-salt balance.

These simple tips, most likely, will allow palpitation to come to the norm. If the rhythm is increasing more often enough, and its symptomatology does not pass after the proposed measures, it is necessary to urgently seek advice from a specialist. To reduce the risk of tachycardia to a minimum, a future mother should avoid situations that can trigger a stressful or depressed condition. Communicate only with nice people, often go to the outdoors.

Lovers of strong coffee and tea, during this period should be removed from their diet of these drinks or at least reduce their consumption to a minimum. Do not forget about the vitamins and trace elements, which are especially needed for the future mother and the person developing in it, but one should not allow them to overdose. After all, this search can also cause heart palpitations during pregnancy. If there is a medical need for medication, their consumption should be whistled to a minimum. The main thing is not to dismiss this problem, it's just worthwhile to be a little more careful about your health, and in this situation and the health of your baby.

Palpitation in early pregnancy

As a rule, the number of heart beats at rest, which is equal to the norm, is 60 - 80. After conception, the organism of the future mother begins to actively rebuild, adapting to its new position. Therefore, the palpitation of the fetus in the early stages can reach 120 beats per minute or more. This situation occurs against the backdrop of a sharp change in the hormonal background, the acceleration of metabolic processes in the body of the future mother. During this period, the consumption of vitamins and minerals is activated, and if the amount of the woman's intake is insufficient (for example, magnesium), this can also trigger a tachycardia. But this deviation in the early stages of pregnancy is rare. Most often the cause of this manifestation is the banal physical stress or stress of the future mother.

In such a case, it is sufficient to eliminate these irritating factors, and the problem is solved. If, however, the heart rate increases, you can wash with cold water and, after taking a comfortable position of the body, relax. The future mummy should focus more on positive emotions, abstracting from the negative.

Still such not artful councils:

  • eat often, but in small portions.
  • if the heartbeat is very strong, then eat better standing! In this case, for 40 - 60 minutes, do not go to bed.
  • it is worth to increase the intake of foods rich in potassium and magnesium (they are also called heart vitamins): dried apricots, bananas, raisins, seafood and others.

Severe heartbeat during pregnancy

The second trimester of pregnancy is coming, the weight of the future mother's body begins to increase, and the load on the cardiovascular system increases, which can result in a tonometer reading of 100 to 115 beats per minute, because now he has to be responsible for two lives. His rhythms can change dramatically, adjusting to the fruit was comfortable in the womb of the mother. After all, to the second trimester, all systems and organs in the body of the future person have already been laid, and he begins to develop further, learning to use them. During this period, the child especially needs enough oxygen and nutrients, which can cause a strong heartbeat during pregnancy. It is these factors that doctors explain frequent complaints of pregnant women on stitching pains in the region of the heart and a pounding heart. Such a patient's condition in medical circles is called physiological tachycardia.

In this case, there is no reason to worry about either your health or the health of your baby. A short-term strong heartbeat during pregnancy does not cause any harm to either the mother or the baby. In most cases, after the birth, this pathology goes by itself.

But nevertheless, it is worth paying attention to this factor of your attending physician, especially in cases when the frequency of rhythm is accompanied by other symptoms (for example, vomiting and nausea). Such a symptomatology may indicate a more severe pathology: heart disease, early, but worse, late toxicosis.

Arising for one reason, the intensity of the symptomatology can be different. Physicians, to date, carry two different forms of such manifestations:

  • Sinus tachycardia, which is diagnosed if the number of rhythms gives deviation from the norm of no more than 15 - 20 beats per minute.
  • More "uncomfortable" doctors consider a paroxysmal tachycardia, which is indicated on the tonometer in figures of 160 to 200 beats per minute.

An intensified heartbeat is in itself an unpleasant phenomenon, which can arise quite spontaneously and just as suddenly disappear. To panic in this situation it is not necessary - consultation with a specialist will allow to find out the cause of its occurrence and, if necessary, to take effective measures.

Palpitations and shortness of breath in pregnancy

During the period of gestation the changes affect not only the vascular system of the mother's body, the restructuring is concerned with the woman's respiratory system, because now oxygen is required not only for the mother, but also for a significant part of it goes to the placenta, ensuring the normal formation and development of the future little man. Proceeding from this, the effectiveness of the breathing of the expectant mother increases, she begins to breathe more often, which periodically leads to shortness of breath - lack of air. But this does not mean that a pregnant woman and her baby are threatened with "oxygen starvation," just the lungs of a person are limited to the chest, and can not expand with inspiration. The respite is the reaction of the body to overload. In parallel with this, thanks to hormones, there is compensation of the chest space, the pregnant woman begins to breathe more often.

Therefore, palpitations and shortness of breath in pregnancy - this is a normal state, not contrary to the physiology of women. During the period of shortness of breath and rapid heartbeat, it is possible to recommend a future mother:

  • Lie down, preferably at a convenient place and try to equalize your breathing. Try to find a comfortable position for yourself.
  • Try to change the position of the body, maybe the growing fetus presses too hard on the lungs, further reducing their volume.
  • Try breathing exercises.

The main reasons for causing shortness of breath include:

  • The fetus grows, gaining weight. At the same time, his need for oxygen also increases.
  • In connection with the growth of the embryo, the volumes of circulating blood also increase.
  • The fetus grows, grows in size, it needs more space, therefore, it begins to press the internal organs of the mother, including the heart, lungs, diaphragm. That is, the need for oxygen increases, and the volume of the chest decreases, which leads to increased heart rate and difficulty breathing.
  • If a woman during the period of bearing a child is inadequate, anemia may develop, which leads to the appearance of palpitations and shortness of breath during pregnancy.

Therefore, during this period, a minor shortness of breath (22-24 sighs per minute at a rate of 16-20 sighs) and rapid heart rate (up to 100 beats per minute) is normal and does not justify panic.

This symptomatology is aggravated against a background of stressful situations, physical exertion. And accordingly, the longer the gestation period, the more pronounced its manifestation.

Diagnosis of heartbeat during pregnancy

A woman, in anticipation of the birth of her child is sufficiently limited in the methods of diagnosis, because they must be absolutely harmless for only the nascent and developing fetus. But in the case of rapid heart rate, the most informative method can be called electrocardiography. Based on the ECG, a cardiologist can already make a reasonably sound diagnosis. And if it sounds like a sinus tachycardia, you can only rejoice, because this kind of rapid heart rate does not require special treatment and is capable of disappearing after delivery.

Diagnosis of heartbeat during pregnancy based on ECG data allows you to unequivocally state the presence or absence of a disease of the cardiovascular system. Confirmation of sinus tachycardia can serve other symptoms:

  • The increase in heart rate is observed after eating.
  • Tachycardia worsens when the pregnant woman is lying down.
  • Attacks are frequent in a stuffy room.
  • They can be provoked by emotional outbursts of mood.

Such causes of the rapid heart rate are called extracardiac, since they are not tied to cardiovascular pathology.

In addition to the electrocardiogram, in the diagnosis of palpitations during pregnancy, other physicians can be used as prescribed by the attending physician:

  • Ultrasonic examination of the heart.
  • Ultrasound examination of the thyroid gland.
  • Blood test for hormones.

The most dangerous, the doctors consider a combination of sinus tachycardia and heart disease in a woman's history, while if the heart rate is frequent enough and shows figures above 120 beats per minute. This leads the heart myocardium to rapid exhaustion, which is fraught with all sorts of complications, both with the health of the woman herself and her unborn child.

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Treatment of heartbeat during pregnancy

If the pregnant woman often feels how the heart trembles and it causes considerable discomfort to her, it is worthwhile to worry, and on the next scheduled examination, inform the obstetrician-gynecologist about it. Only a specialist has the right to establish a diagnosis and find out the cause of the pathology. And only on the basis of the obtained results of the study, he is able to decide whether it is worthwhile to prescribe some kind of treatment or this is the result of completely natural changes in the woman's body, which inevitably occur as soon as a new life has begun in her womb.

In most cases, the treatment of heartbeat during pregnancy is not prescribed. To remove symptoms, normal rest, balanced nutrition and vitamin and mineral complex intake will be sufficient. The doctors say that this is a legitimate reaction of the body to its new position.

If the pregnant woman is too emotional and it harms her condition, you can try to meditate or master simple, suitable for the future mother, exercises from yoga.

Systematic meditation and yoga in the Eastern countries is considered one of the best techniques for preparing a woman and a fetus for childbirth.

  • In order to begin meditation, it is first necessary to adjust oneself, having abandoned domestic worries and everyday problems.
  • To conduct meditation with a full stomach is unacceptable, so the last meal before the session should be no later than an hour and a half.
  • In this case, the room where the session will take place must be well ventilated and quiet. Nothing should distract a woman from self-improvement.
  • You can, if necessary, ignite a soft unobtrusive light or an aromatic candle. Include a smooth calm melody, the sound of the sea, the singing of birds.
  • Clothes should be soft, pleasant to the touch, free, so that nothing is squashed anywhere, and, preferably, from natural fabrics. From the body remove all jewelry, hair clips, watches, contact lenses, hair to dissolve. Nothing should constrain the body and distract the mind.
  • It is convenient to sit on the padded stool or couch, the back should be straight, relax all muscles. If the period of fetal birthing is already long and it's hard for a pregnant woman to be pregnant, you can meditate and lie on your side. To make the position more comfortable, you can use pillows.
  • Meditation begins with inspiration (the eyes are closed). Having relaxed, it is necessary to imagine the path of air through the body. First, he enters his throat through his nose. Feel its taste, its aroma. Then it gradually starts to fill the lungs, the chest wall expands, the air gently flows into the stomach and then starts the way back. Imagine a bright joyful balloon, which at first is smoothly inflated, and then as it is blown away. During breathing exercises try not to think about anything, just concentrate on the process itself.
  • During the inhalation and exhalation it is necessary to consider - this will allow you to abstract yourself from the situation around more quickly. As soon as there was a feeling of flight or presence in another dimension, it is necessary to stop the account. Try to become one with this state.
  • 20 - 30 minutes is enough to get a stunning result.

During the period of fetal birthing, many asanas are banned due to a real threat to the course of pregnancy itself. But some exercises not only will not harm, but will give a tangible positive result in the psychophysical state of a woman.

  • We begin exercises with lotus posture - you need to sit straight, in Turkish. Try to relax as much as possible. Feel every cell of your body and the child's body. Do some breathing exercises. Next, go to the exercises.
  • Upavistha Conasana (wide angle sitting). A woman needs to sit on the mat, widely spreading her legs apart. The back is straightened, the chest is raised, which gives the child more space. In this position, perform slow deep breaths and the same smooth exhalations.
  • Jan Shirshasan (head near the knee). Staying in the previous position, bend the right knee so that the foot of the right foot rests against the inner surface of the left hip. The thorax is straightened, the back is straight. Relax and spend a certain time in this position (that was comfortable). Change your foot and do this asana again.
  • Buddha Konasana (connected corner). Sit on the roller and lean back against the wall. The height of the bead should be such that the knees of the future mother are below the level of the pelvic bones. For convenience, under the hips, you can put a pillow or blanket. Relax, making sure that your back is straight.
  • Ardha Uttanasana (half-tilt forward standing). It is necessary to stand upright, put your feet to the width of your shoulders, your arms are stretched out in front of you. Begin to smoothly bend with a straight back until the moment when the back and legs are 90 degrees apart. Hands are a direct extension of the back. Breath is smooth, balancing.
  • Prazarita Padottanasana (widely spaced legs). Become straight, placing the lower limbs 1-1.2 meters wide. The feet are parallel to one another and pressed firmly against the surface. Lean forward, leaning on some kind of improvised object. The back thus remains straight, and the muscular tissues of the waist and groin area are relaxed.
  • Shavasana (rest). Lie on the surface so that the back of the future mother is on the rug or blanket, and feet on the floor. Under your feet put a roller, and under your head a comfortable cushion. Now you can relax. It's enough for five relaxing minutes, and the pregnant woman feels a surge of strength, and psychological tranquility.

If at rest the pulse rate shows a figure below 110 beats per minute, and after stress or stress rises no more than 160 beats per minute, one should not worry about this norm for such a state of the organism.

In the case if the cause of pathological work is some of the diseases of internal organs or systems of the female body, the treatment of heartbeat during pregnancy is provided to specialists of the profile disease together with the obstetrician gynecologist.

Prevention

Regardless of whether there are any problems with the heart or not, prevention of heartbeat during pregnancy does not hurt in any way.

  • Eliminate smoking and alcohol from the ration of childbirth.
  • Follow the pace of weight gain. Overeating and overweight - this is bad in any manifestations.
  • Do not overload yourself physically, but constantly lying on the couch does not suit. Everything should be in moderation.
  • It is worth mastering the techniques of meditation and simple, but effective exercises from yoga.
  • It is necessary to go to bed no later than ten in the evening.
  • Rational balanced nutrition. It is worth paying special attention to cottage cheese, milk, hard cheese, citrus fruits, nuts, fish, grapes and bananas.
  • Exclude from the diet strong tea and coffee, carbonated drinks, canned food.
  • Mandatory walks in nature. And from the point of view of fresh air, and in terms of relaxation.
  • Swimming, daily exercise for pregnant women.
  • Infusions and decoctions of herbs that have sedative properties: lemon balm, lily of the valley, dog rose, thyme, chamomile, hawthorn, valerian, yarrow, mint, fennel.
  • Avoid stressful situations.
  • Adequate alternation of loads and rest.
  • If possible, do not take any medication of chemical origin.
  • Prophylactic intake of magnesium and calcium.
  • Drink a sufficient amount of liquid to maintain the water-salt balance in the body of the future mother.
  • Thought is material - it is necessary for the future mother to find sources of positive emotions for herself.

Forecast

In the early stages of pregnancy tachycardia is observed quite rarely. It begins to gain momentum already during the second trimester. In this case, in most cases, it is expressed by rare outbreaks of rapid heartbeat. Therefore, the prognosis of heartbeat during pregnancy, the vast majority of cases, is positive. After all, the condition of a woman can be significantly improved even during pregnancy due to simple preventive measures. In this case, after delivery, this problem is resolved by itself without leaving any consequences on the health of the mother or the newborn.

Thus, dear future moms, increased heart rate during pregnancy - this is not pathology, but the natural course of the process of bearing a baby. But also it is not necessary to relax. After all, no one knows your body, because you know it yourself. At the slightest discomfort in the state of the course of pregnancy, it is worth notifying your doctor about it, because now you are in the answer not only for your health and life. Put more positive emotions into your life and enjoy your special position. Health and favorable birth to you and your baby!

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