Frederick syndrome: treatment and prevention

Frederick's syndrome is a rather serious deviation in the work of the heart, first diagnosed by physiologist from Belgium Leon Frederic in 1904. And although few people have heard of this disease, it occurs quite often.

Earlier in the treatment of the phenomenon Frederik actively practiced the use of anticholinergics, but since they can cause mental abnormalities, modern medicine gradually abandons them.

Description of the syndrome

The syndrome of Frederic is a combination of signs that are characteristic of complete transverse blockade and atrial fibrillation.

In this deviation, electrical signals completely stop entering the ventricles from the atria, which lose the ability to regularly and regularly contract.

The absence of exciting pulses causes foci in the walls or the lower part of the atrioventricular node of the ventricles, which independently begin to produce electrical signals. This becomes a kind of compensation, but does not save the situation, since the pulse frequency is inadequate (a maximum of forty to sixty signals).

As a result, the ventricles of the heart contract more slowly than in a healthy person, which means that the blood run slows down, which causes oxygen starvation and is the main danger of the disease called "Frederick's syndrome."

Main symptoms

Among the main symptoms of the syndrome (or phenomenon) Frederic distinguish:

• Equal, but slowed down pulse.
• Dizziness.
• Weakness.
• Shortness of breath.
• Rapid fatigue.
• Drowsiness.
• Fainting.

All this is characteristic of a state where the brain does not receive enough oxygen.

Causes of the syndrome

The syndrome of Frederic does not arise from scratch, if the heart is healthy. It is a consequence, a side effect of such serious diseases as:

• Myocardial infarction.
• Heart defects.
• Postinfarction cardiosclerosis.
• Myocarditis.
• Cardiomyopathy.
• Angina pectoris.

These diseases cause sclerotic processes, in which connective tissue grows in the heart. The latter displaces and replaces the cells, which are responsible for the generation and transmission of electrical impulses.

Diagnosis of the phenomenon of Frederick

Since the symptoms of this disease are similar to manifestations of many other ailments, it is possible to diagnose Frederick's syndrome only with the help of the electrocardiogram method.

And to observe the behavior of the heart is desirable during the day to see what rhythm is at different times of the day and night, to see how the heart muscle reacts to the load, and so on.

Usually, the diagnosis of "Frederick's syndrome" ECG is as follows:

• There are no teeth P, they are replaced by waves of flickering or trembling character (f and F).
• The ventricular rhythm is regular, but the number of cuts per minute does not exceed 40-60 times.
• When rhythm is formed in the lower part of the atrioventricular junction, the ventricle complexes are narrow and have a normal morphology without deviations.
• If the rhythm is formed in the walls, the ventricular complexes look dilated and deformed.

Syndrome Frederic: treatment and prevention

If you identify the symptoms described above, you should definitely contact the doctor and take a survey. Oxygen starvation is a dangerous condition that can cause serious abnormalities in the brain. And with the syndrome of Frederick, it can last up to five to seven seconds, when the heart actually stops (this happens in cases when there is no compensation for impulses in the form of a ventricular rhythm).

Timely diagnosis will minimize the risks, and treatment will get rid of the disease and live a full life. The prognosis of the disease is favorable.

To date, Frederick syndrome is eliminated, usually by implantation in the cardiac muscle of the implant, which produces impulses instead of the atria. The electrode is installed in the ventricle, and its rhythm is programmed in advance and depends on the age and general condition of the patient.

Prevention as such does not exist. It consists in the prevention and the competent treatment of the diseases that cause this phenomenon.