Atrial arrhythmia begins in the upper chambers of the heart and includes:

• Atrial fibrillation (sometimes called "afib"): A disorganized rhythm in the atria and the most common arrhythmia, affecting more than 4 million Americans. With atrial fibrillation, the heart's upper chambers beat irregularly, affecting blood flow to the heart muscle and to the rest of the body. This can cause blood clots which may lead to a stroke.
• Atrial flutter: Similar to atrial fibrillation but has a more regular pattern.
• Sick sinus syndrome: The heart’s pacemaker doesn’t fire properly, slowing the heart rate down.
• Sinus tachycardia: The heart rate speeds up due to fast electrical signals from the sinus node.
• Sinus bradycardia: The electrical signals in the sinus node are either blocked or slow down.

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People with atrial arrhythmias often feel tired and sluggish, and may experience a flutter in their chest or throat.

Many people can be treated by medication alone, and a number of treatments for arrhythmia are outpatient-based. There are a variety of treatment options, depending on the condition of the patient, including:

• Drug therapy: These include blood thinners, beta-blockers and calcium channel blockers.
• Implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD): This is an implantable device that uses electrical pulses to help control abnormal heart rhythms.
• Electrical cardioversion: Uses an external defibrillator to deliver an electric shock to the chest wall in order to restore a normal heart rhythm.
• Pacemaker: An implanted device that delivers painless electric pulses that stimulate the heart to beat.
• Catheter ablation: A minimally invasive catheter-based surgery intended to cure atrial fibrillation (afib), using radiofrequency energy to cauterize the “short circuits” that are generating the atrial fibrillation.
• AV node ablation: a catheter-based procedure for patients with atrial fibrillation who cannot take medication or for whom medication doesn't work.

• Heart Rhythm Disorders Information Guide
• Donate a Pacemaker