Clinical Approach to Patients with Palpitations

Card Electrophysiol Clin. 2018 Jun;10(2):387-396. doi: 10.1016/j.ccep.2018.02.010.

Abstract

Palpitations are among the most common symptoms that prompt patients to consult a physician. In the diagnostic workup of patients with palpitations, the initial evaluation involves history, physical examination, and 12-lead electrocardiogram. These investigations yield a prognostic stratification of the patients, and a definitive suspected diagnosis of the cause of symptoms in a good proportion of cases. When the initial evaluation results are negative and the patient is suffering from heart disease, or if the palpitations are frequent or poorly tolerated and with a high probability of an arrhythmic origin, ambulatory electrocardiogram monitoring and/or electrophysiological study should be undertaken.

Keywords: Ambulatory ECG monitoring; Diagnosis; Electrophysiological study; Palpitations; Prognosis.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Arrhythmias, Cardiac / diagnosis*
  • Arrhythmias, Cardiac / physiopathology
  • Electrocardiography, Ambulatory / methods*
  • Humans
  • Prognosis
  • Telemetry / methods*