What does a heart rate below 60 mean? A slow heart rate should be watched out for

A heart rate below 60 is considered bradycardia. The normal heart rate is between 60-100. There are physiological reasons for bradycardia, such as athletes who exercise for a long time, during sleep, and systemic diseases, such as colds. If you feel uncomfortable, you should seek timely treatment.

1. Causes of bradycardia

1: Physiological: Normal people, especially athletes who participate in physical exercise for a long time or people who do heavy physical labor, may experience sinus bradycardia. Sleepiness and fear can also cause temporary bradycardia. For example, some techniques such as compressing the eyeball, pressing the carotid sinus, vomiting, and vasoinhibitory syncope can cause sinus bradycardia.

2: Systemic diseases: influenza, typhoid fever, hypothyroidism, diphtheria recovery period, obstructive jaundice, increased intracranial pressure, certain infections such as leptospirosis, infectious mononucleosis, pituitary dysfunction, hyperkalemia, alkali poisoning, esophageal diverticulum, depression, can all cause sinus bradycardia.

3: Drug-related: Some drugs such as beta-blockers, reserpine, lidocaine, amiodarone, guanethidine, morphine, digitalis, quinidine, verapamil, neostigmine, anesthetics, etc. can cause sinus bradycardia.

4: Cardiovascular diseases: acute myocardial infarction, myocarditis, endocarditis, pericarditis invading the sinus node, chronic ischemic heart disease, sinus node inflammation, thrombosis, dilation, inflammation of the sinus node artery, certain cardiomyopathies such as amyloidosis, tetralogy of Fallot or after great vessel transposition surgery, microbial involvement of the heart, bleeding into the sinus node, familial sinus bradycardia, central nervous system diseases involving the cardiac inhibitory or acceleration centers, etc., can all lead to the occurrence of bradycardia.

2. Precautions for bradycardia:

1. For people who do not have any heart discomfort, their pulse rate is between 50 and 60 beats per minute. This sinus bradycardia is mostly physiological, that is, it is a normal phenomenon. There is no need to worry about it affecting your health and no treatment is required.

2. For people who have heart discomfort, pay attention to counting the pulse rate when you are calm, and then count the pulse rate when you feel heart discomfort. If the pulse rate is lower than usual every time you feel uncomfortable, it means that your discomfort is caused by bradycardia and you need treatment. In severe cases, you need to install a pacemaker to speed up your heart rate. You can also check your 24-hour electrocardiogram to see what your heart rate is at its slowest. If the speed of your heartbeat has nothing to do with heart discomfort and your pulse is between 50 and 60 beats per minute, you do not need to treat your bradycardia, but you do need other tests to confirm whether you have heart disease.