Wolff-Parkinson- White-Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions

by Kenneth Kee

Overview

Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a congenital heart disorder in which an additional electrical connection in the heart can cause episodes of rapid heart rate (tachycardia)
WPW syndrome is one of the most frequent causes of fast heart rate disorders in infants and children.
Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a heart disorder that induces the heart to beat abnormally fast for periods of time.
It is a relatively frequent disorder, affecting between one and three in every 1,000 people.
Many WPW cases are diagnosed in otherwise healthy adults aged between 20 and 40.
Occasionally the extra electrical pathway will not cause any symptoms and may only be detected when an electrocardiogram (ECG) test is done for another disorder.
It can be frightening for the patient to be told that he or she has a problem with the heart, but WPW syndrome normally is not serious.
Many people will have no symptoms or only feel occasional, mild episodes of their fast heart rate.
WPW syndrome is a congenital abnormal disorder which can result in supra-ventricular tachycardia (SVT) that makes use of an atrioventricular (AV) accessory tract.
The additional pathway may also allow conduction during other supra-ventricular arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation or flutter.
With treatment, the disorder can normally be entirely cured.
Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is the most frequent of the ventricular pre-excitation syndromes
A person with this syndrome may have:
1. Chest pain or chest tightness
2. Dizziness
3. Lightheadedness
4. Fainting
5. Palpitations
If the patient has WPW syndrome, the patient will feel events where the heart suddenly starts racing, before stopping or slowing down suddenly.
A physical examination done during a tachycardia episode will reveal a heart rate faster than 100 beats per minute.
The normal heart rate is 60 to 100 beats per minute in adults, and under 150 beats per minute in newborns, infants, and small children.
The disorder may be diagnosed with an ECG or with continual or person triggered ambulatory ECG monitoring, such as a Holter monitor.
A procedure called an electrophysiologic study (EPS) is done using catheters placed in the heart.
This test may help detect the site of the additional electrical pathway.
Classic ECG findings of WPW syndrome are a short PR interval (smaller than 120 ms), a wide QRS complex of more than 120 ms with a slurred onset producing a delta wave in the early part of QRS and secondary ST-T wave alterations
Asymptomatic patients may just require periodic assessment.
The main types of treatment are drug therapy, radiofrequency (RF) ablation and surgical ablation.
Radiofrequency ablation is the first-line treatment for symptomatic WPW syndrome.
It has substituted surgical treatment and most drug treatments.
Medicines, mainly anti-arrhythmic drugs such as procainamide or amiodarone, may be given to control or stop a rapid heartbeat.
If the heart rate does not return to normal with medical treatment, the doctors may make use of a form of treatment called cardioversion (electrical shock).
The long-term treatment for WPW syndrome is very often catheter RF ablation.
This intervention needs inserting a tube (catheter) into a vein through a small incision near the groin up to the heart area.
When the tip enters the heart, the small area that is causing the fast heart rate is obliterated using a special type of energy called radiofrequency or by freezing it (cryoablation).
Open heart surgery to cauterize or freeze the additional pathway may also give a permanent cure for WPW syndrome.
In most cases, this intervention is done only if the patient requires heart surgery for other reasons.

TABLE OF CONTENT
Introduction
Chapter 1 Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome
Chapter 2 Causes
Chapter 3 Symptoms
Chapter 4 Diagnosis
Chapter 5 Treatment
Chapter 6 Prognosis
Chapter 7 Atrial Flutter
Chapter 8 Palpitations
Epilogue

Product Details

BN ID:	2940154530702
Publisher:	Kenneth Kee
Publication date:	08/28/2017
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
File size:	182 KB

About the Author

Medical doctor since 1972. Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009. Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993. Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 65. However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon. He first started writing free blogs on medical conditions seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com. His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiolographical account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.com. This autobiolographical account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Conditions” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com. From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 550 amazon kindle books and some into Smashwords.com eBooks. He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books. He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures. Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple. For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients. The later books go into more details of medical conditions. The first chapter of all my ebooks is always taken from my blog A Simple Guide to Medical Conditions which was started in 2007 as a simple educational help to my patients on my first blog http://kennethkee.blogspot.com. The medical condition was described simply and direct to the point. Because the simple guide as taken from the blog was described as too simple, I have increased the other chapters to include more detailed description of the illness, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment. As a result there are the complaints by some readers of constant repetitions of the same contents but in detail and fairly up to date. He has published 550 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter. The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health conditions and not meant as textbooks. He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke. His clinic is now relocated to the Bouna Vista Community Centre. The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall. He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) starting with the Apple computer and going to PC. All the PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core. The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive. He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance. His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner. The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned. This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale. Dr Kee is the author of: "A Family Doctor's Tale" "Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine" "Case Notes From A Family Doctor"