Overview

• An arrhythmia is an abnormal heart rhythm
• Interruption of the normal electrical signal that coordinates the normal heart muscle

Classifications

• There are many ways to classify arrhythmias, with many of then falling under multiple groups.
• Below we have grouped them by heart rate, and arrest arrhythmias

Cardiac Arrest

Four Cardiac Arrest Rhythms

Tachyarrhythmias

• Any rhythm with a heart rate of >100bpm
• Generally classified by
  • Regularity: Irregular or regular
  • QRS width: Broad or narrow

Narrow Complex Tachyarrhythmias

Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT)

Atrial Fibrillation (1)

Broad Complex Tachyarrhythmias

Ventricular Tachycardia

Torsades de pointes

• Ventricular fibrillation is also a broad complex tachycardia, but we have grouped this in the cardiac arrest arrhythmia page Four Cardiac Arrest Rhythms