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Postural tachycardia syndrome (pots)
- 1. P O S T U R A L TA C H Y C A R D I A S Y N D R O M E ( P O T S ) S A A S H A A H M E D
- 2. W H AT I S P O T S ? โข Postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a very serious condition however it is not life threatening. โข The condition affects blood circulation and therefore consists of abnormalities in heart rate as there is an increase during simple activities like standing up, sitting up or even laying down. โข Each POTS case varies in severity as there is not a specific cause and the variation in symptoms is also different for each patient therefore some patients are more affected by the condition then others.
- 3. S Y M P T O M S Abnormally increased heart rate Fainting and light- headedness Brain fog Heart palpation Shaking and sweating Weakness and fatigue Headaches, body pains and chest pains Poor sleep or insomnia Discolouration of hands and feet Nervousness There are many symptoms in this condition which vary in each patient as well as the severity of the symptom. These symptoms include:
- 4. D I A G N O S I S The best test conducted on patients for diagnosis is known as a tilt table test which measures the heart rate and blood pressure as the patient is moved into different positions. There are also other tests which are conducted when trying to diagnose POTS such as: ๏ง Echocardiogram ๏ง Skin nerve biopsy ๏ง Autonomic breathing test
- 5. T R E AT M E N T S A N D M A N A G E M E N T Increase salt intake Increase water intake Eat smaller meals throughout the day Sleeping properly There isnโt a specific treatment or management plan for POTS, the treatment and managements is different for every patient. Due to this patients have to try out different methods and medication in order to find what suits their POTS the most. Lifestyle change is one of the most essenatial strategy used, these changes include:
- 6. C A U S E S There has not been a specific cause for POTS identified. However there are a range of factors which have been seen to trigger POTS and therefore being the cause. These include: โข Traumatic event โ surgery โข During or after pregnancy โข Viral illness โข An underlying condition โ cancer or even diabetes
- 7. W H Y I C H O S E P O T S ? I chose POTS as my topis as my sister has this condition. My sister was diagnosed in 2014 and it took the doctor 2 years to diagnose her. I have always found the condition very interesting and the ongoing unfamiliarity with the condition also sparks my interest.
- 8. H O W I T R E L AT E S T O F U T U R E C A R E E R PAT H WAY ? There are many career pathways which relate to this topic as POTS is a fairly new condition which still lacks a lot of research. Therefore I could develop a career in research specifically for POTS as I find this condition interesting. I could develop a career around treating patients and linking their symptoms to possible disease like a doctor.
- 9. T H A N K Y O U F O R L I S T E N I N G
- 10. R E F E R E N C E S โข Rodriguez A.P. (2017) Tilt Table Testing. In: Hendel R., Kimmelstiel C. (eds) Cardiology Procedures. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-7290-1_20 โข Whiteman, H. (2016). Five weird and wonderful surgical procedures, from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/314009#1)-Rotationplasty:-Turning-an-ankle- into-a-knee
Editor's Notes
- Hi my name is Saasha and today I will be talking to you about a quite unfamiliar disease called postural tachycardia syndrome also known as POTS. This disease affects the autonomic nervous system and is commonly misdiagnosed. I will be discussing what this disease is, its symptoms, management treatment and possible causes throughput this presentation. I will also discuss the reason for my interest in this topic and how it is relevant for my future career.
- The autonomic nervous system is a very essential system as it regulate the bodies essential functions such as heart rate and blood pressure. The system carries out its's functions automatically therefore as POTS consists of the misfunctioning of the automimic nervous system there is a large impact on the patients blood circulations and heart rate. POTS can affect anybody at any time of life however there have been more cases in females than males and it generally affects patients between their teenage years into old age, between 13 - 50 years old. If the heart is not functioning properly this has an effect on the whole body and therefore POTS in known to affect the quality of life as the problems and symptoms caused by the defect in the blood circulation and heart rate cause a lot of misfunctioning and uncomfortableness for the patient such as fainting, heart palpations, chest paint and weakness. Generally when a person stands or sits up the blood is pulled down due to gravity and therefore the blood flow is automatically adjusted increasing the heart rate slightly allowing the maintenance of the blood pressure. However this fucntion is not carried out by the body in POTS patients as the drop of blood supply takes place which then increases the heart rate to an abnormal rate leading to symptoms like fainting and light-headedness.
- There are many symptoms caused by POTS, some patients only experience and couple of these however there are some patients which experience all the symptoms making their daily living very uncomfortable and difficult. These symptoms include: Abnormally increased heart rate โ increasing during activates like standing up or sitting down and generally staying quite increased. Fainting and light-headedness Brain fog โ this is a term referred to forgetting and not being able to focus like forgetting what you are talking about in the middle of a conversation. Heart palpation โ this is where you can feel you own heart beat, feeling something like a flutter or pounding of the heart beat. Shaking and sweating Weakness and fatigue Headaches, body pains and chest pains Poor sleep or insomnia Discolouration of hands and feet โ blood can often pool causing the discolouration. Nervousness
- As I have mentioned previously POTS is a commonly misdiagnosed condition. As the there are a lot of symptoms and some of them can be as simple as just headaches it is often quite difficult to diagnose a POTS patient. The unclear symptoms lead to many tests being conducted on the patients before finding the initial disease - POTS. The most effective and commonly used test carried out to diagnose a patient with POTS is known as a tilt table test. During this test the patients are placed on a table as shown in the image, where the tabled is tilted into different positions and the heart rate and blood pressure is measured. There are also other tests which are conducted such as an echocardiogram which measures heart rate one of the initial symptoms of pots is the abnormal increase in heart rate. Also tests like a skin nerve biopsy and autonomic breathing test which measures the blood pressure and rate during exercise.
- There is no specific treatment or management of POTS, it varies for each patient as each POTS case is different. There have been many cases where the POTS symptoms calm down and become more manageable over time, there have also been cases where the symptoms completely disappear and the patient recovers. The treatment and management of this condition has to be specifically designed for each patient and therefore there is not a specifically identified treatment for POTS. Some POTS are given beta blockers which are used to decease the heart rate. However this may not work for all patients therefore the results from taking the medication are monitored to evaluate the effectiveness. One of the most common treatment plan for the patients is the lifestyle change. Water and salt intake are strongly advised to regulate blood volume and therefore is seen to be the most effective technique for controlling some of the symptoms. Also things like eating smaller meals throughout the day instead of 3 set large meals is advised as smaller meals are easier to digest and have less impact on blood flow than having larger meals. Sleep is very important as not getting enough can trigger many of the POTS patients symptoms therefore to control the symptoms and reduce them ensuring that the patient sleeps properly is essential. The POTS patients must make small adjustments and try and figure out what things might trigger their symptoms as then these can be avoided to reduce them.
- POTS does not have a specific cause and there have been many cases where the cause for the patient is also unknown. Some teenagers develop POTS which eventually disappears over a couple years. There are many factors which can trigger POTS such as: A traumatic event โ this includes event like surgery which affects the body drastically causing a the defect in the autonomic nervous system. During or after pregnancy โ some patients experience this and it eventually disappears as well like the patients who develop it during pregnancy have seen to only have the condition during pregnancy as after birth the symptoms do not occur. Also factors like a viral infection and an underlying condition like cancer or diabetes can be the cause of the condition. Overall there is not specific cause for POTS which is also on of the factors contributing to the misdiagnosis of the condition.