What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Long QT
Syndrome?
Major Signs and Symptoms
If you have long QT syndrome (LQTS), you're prone to
developing a sudden and dangerous
arrhythmia.
Symptoms or signs of the arrhythmias that people with LQTS tend to have often
first appear during childhood and include:
- Unexplained fainting. This happens because your
heart isn't pumping enough blood to your brain. Fainting may occur when you're
under physical or emotional stress. Some people will have a fluttering feeling
in their chest before they faint.
- Unexplained seizures. Those around you may
mistake your fainting from LQTS to be a seizure due to epilepsy. In children,
fainting may be seen as a hysterical reaction to a stressful situation.
- Unexplained drowning or near drowning. This may
be due to fainting while swimming.
- Unexplained
sudden
cardiac arrest or death. This means that your heart suddenly stops beating
for no obvious reason. People who have sudden cardiac arrest will die within
minutes unless they receive treatment. Most people who experience sudden
cardiac arrest die. In about 1 out of 10 patients, sudden cardiac arrest or
death is the first sign of LQTS.
Other Signs and Symptoms
Often people with LQTS 3 will develop an irregular
heartbeat during sleep. This may cause them to have noisy gasping while
sleeping.
. |