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Recurrent fainting could be indicative of cardiac problems
Researchers lack comprehensive evaluation system for the common occurrence of syncope.
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A sudden, acute fainting spell may be a potential symptom of a more complicated cardiac problem, even though it may not be initially recognized as such.
Syncope is a common occurrence in EDs and physician offices. Although many syncopes are attributed to mental or physical health issues, Kousik Krishnan, MD, director of the Arrhythmia Device Clinic at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, said that some of them may be harbingers of more serious conditions.
“In patients with more malignant syncope, in which the onset is abrupt and comes without much warning, patients can at one moment be feeling fine and can then end up on the floor without knowing what happened,” Krishnan told Cardiology Today. “That is suspicious of a ‘cardiac’ cause of syncope, where the rhythm of the heart goes from normal to very abnormal and then returns to normal, allowing for the regaining of consciousness.”
By contrast, patients with noncardiac-related syncope often show symptoms of fainting such as nausea, sweating, blurred vision or dizziness before the syncope episode. Krishnan said that this type of syncope is often associated with a trigger or a situation such as being in a hot room, standing for a long period of time or being dehydrated. Part of the problem specialists have in identifying the type of syncope occurring, according to Krishnan, comes from a lack of standardized evaluation for the condition.
“Syncope is very well recognized, but a good, streamlined management and evaluation of syncope is still a goal we should all have,” he said. “A thorough evaluation is needed for patients with syncope and, in particular, the patients who have the more suspicious, ‘cardiac-caused’ syncope.” – by Eric Raible