Most arrhythmias (abnormal heartbeats) neither cause symptoms nor interfere with the heart’s ability to pump blood. Thus, they usually pose little or no risk. They can cause considerable anxiety if a person becomes aware of them. There are some arrhythmias, harmless in themselves that can lead to more serious arrhythmias.

Any arrhythmia that impairs the heart’s ability to pump blood adequately is serious. How serious, depends in part on where the arrhythmia originates. Is it in the heart’s normal pacemaker, in the atria, or in the ventricles? Generally, arrhythmias which originate in the ventricles are more serious than those that originate in the atria. These are more serious than those that originate in the pacemaker. However, there are many exceptions.

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