AV Node Re Entry Tachycardia (AVNRT) Video

AV Node Reentry Tachycardia

In a normal heart beat, or normal sinus rhythm, an electrical impulse originates at the SA node which is located in the upper right atrium.  This electrical impulse travels through the atria to the AV node where there is a brief pause.  The AV node then transfers the electrical impulse to the ventricles which completes a heart beat.

Atrioventricular Nodal Reentry Tachycardia (AVNRT) is a heart arrhythmia that is classified as a supraventricular tachycardia. IN AVNRT, a continuous reentry circuit exists which includes the AV node and lower atria.  In AVNRT there is a simultaneous activation of the atrium and ventricle.  Reentry is defined as reactivation of heart tissue for a second or subsequent time by the same electrical impulse. 

Reentry occurs when an electrical impulse is delayed or blocked in one or more segments of the heart’s electrical conduction system. This concept can be thought of as a “short circuit” of the heart’s electrical system. In AVNRT, abnormal signals reenter in the area of the AV node of the heart.  A fast pathway and a slow pathway allow the AV node to receive multiple signals causing a fast heartbeat. 

Symptoms include; palpitations, angina and syncope (fainting). Therapies for AVNRT may include medications and/or catheter ablation/ radiofrequency ablation.  You may also need a pacemaker implanted after your catheter ablation/radiofrequency ablation.