Help to Prevent a Stroke by Checking Your Pulse

My husband had a stroke in 2004. He is among the nearly 5 million people in the United States today who have survived a stroke, which affects 4 out of 5 American families.

May is National Stroke Awareness Month. According to the National Stroke Association, 60 seconds once a month can help prevent a stroke. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in America but stroke may be preventable and one way to try and prevent strokes is as easy as taking your pulse. A very irregular pulse rate may be a sign of atrial fibrillation (AF), a major risk factor for stroke and if it is detected early, treatment can reduce the risk of stroke. AF is a potentially dangerous heart arrhythmia that occurs when the upper chambers of the heart, known as the atrium, beat rapidly and irregularly. This can lead to the formation of blood clots which can enter the blood stream and block circulation to the brain, causing a stroke. Learn how to take your pulse and determine whether the rhythm is regular or irregular.

Check Your Own Pulse

Check your pulse every month if you have symptoms of AF but you should realize that AF can come and go and frequently has no symptoms. AF can occur at any age, but becomes more common as we grow older and it is more common in people who have high blood pressure, heart disease, or lung disease. Even if you have a regular pulse now, check your pulse once a month, particularly if you are over 55. Also, you can help yourself, a friend and/or a loved one prevent a stroke.

How to Check Your Pulse

• Turn your left hand palm-side up; place the first two fingers of your right hand along the outer edge of the left wrist to just below where your wrist and thumb meet. Move your fingers around until you can feel a (throbbing) pulse.
• Using a clock or stopwatch, for one minute, count how many times you feel your pulse. This is your heart beat per minute.
• While counting how many times your heart beats every minute, also pay attention to the rhythm and regularity. Is your heart beating regularly? Are you losing or dropping beats? Are some beats fading or weaker than others? Is the rhythm chaotic, frequently missed or extra heartbeats, racing, fluttering or pounding feeling in the chest? Others have complained about an occasional dizziness, faintness or lightheadedness.

It’s the Rhythm, Not the Rate

A normal adult heart rate is between 60 and 100 beats per minute. A pulse greater than 100 beats per minute is defined as tachycardia. Pulse less than 60 beats per minute are defined as bradycardia. Tachycardia and bradycardia are not necessarily abnormal. Athletes tend to be bradycardic at rest (excellent condition). Tachycardia is a normal response to stress or exercise.

You are not checking your pulse rate, or how fast your heart is beating. Rather, when you check your pulse for AF, it is important to understand that you are checking to make sure that your heartbeat (pulse) is regular. A normal heartbeat is regular. A heartbeat with AF is very irregular. The importance of detecting AF is to decide if the rhythm of your heartbeat is regular or very irregular.

• Regular – evenly spaced beats, may vary slightly with respiration
• Regularly Irregular – regular pattern with “skipped” beats

If your pulse feels irregular, unsteady and uneven, there is a possibility that you may have Atrial Fibrillation (or AF) and could be at increased risk for a stroke. Irregularly Irregular beats are chaotic, with no real pattern.

What should you do if your pulse appears to be very irregular?

Do not panic. Even if the pulse is very irregular, it does not necessarily mean that you have AF. However, this may be an indication of heart troubles. AF is a very irregular heartbeat and it can be a dangerous condition if not diagnosed, treated and monitored, and although AF is not an emergency, you should consult a physician who can do an electrocardiogram (ECG) so that you will know for sure.