Disclaimer: This Inside South Florida segment is sponsored by Broward Health. All opinions and views are of the advertiser and does not reflect the same of WSFL-TV.
Atrial fibrillation, commonly known as AFib, is an arrhythmia of the heart — an abnormal rhythm where the heart beats too quickly, too slowly or irregularly.
Dr. Jonathan Nieves, a cardiologist with Broward Health, said the condition specifically affects the heart's upper chambers.
"In the case of AFib, the top chambers, known as the atrium, will be very chaotic and irregular," Nieves said. "Sometimes that's for brief moments, and times, maybe minutes, seconds. Other times, it's permanent, and patients are in it all the time."
Nieves said the symptoms of AFib exist on a wide spectrum.
"Patients can be completely asymptomatic or have a more severe form, where they're in heart failure, requiring ICU admissions," Nieves said.
Regardless of symptoms, Nieves said most patients require some form of medication, which may include blood thinners or heart rate-slowing medications.
The most common risk factors for AFib include uncontrolled high blood pressure, diabetes, and alcohol consumption. Nieves also pointed to sleep apnea as a significant contributing condition.
"Patients will maybe be overweight and can snore or stop breathing in the middle of the night," Nieves said.
External factors such as stress, smoking, and consuming products that increase adrenaline can also worsen the condition.
"Those can lead to palpitations in and of themselves, but then worsen to progress through atrial fibrillation," Nieves said.
Nieves said there are also differences in how AFib presents between men and women.
"Men tend to develop it at younger ages. Women at older ages, however, the symptoms tend to be much more severe in women," Nieves said.
When it comes to treatment, Nieves said lifestyle changes remain the most important first step, but some patients require more advanced procedures. He said those procedures, which were once only available at specialized centers of excellence, are now offered at multiple Broward Health locations.
"Those procedures are cardioversions, pacemakers, and even ablation procedures," Nieves said.
Nieves said the procedures are available not only in Fort Lauderdale, but also at Broward Health satellite locations, including Coral Springs Medical Center and Broward Health North.
For more information, visit browardhealth.org/heart.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
