Sinus Tachycardia and Sinus Bradycardia
These two conditions are disorders of impulse formation in the heart.
Sinus Tachycardia is a very common finding in the pediatric patients seen in the following conditions:
– anxiety
– fever
– anemia
– shock
– exercise
Clinically, sinus tachycardia is suspected if the heart rate is between 140-200/ minute without a clocklike regularity and consistency.
Usually, management of this condition is finding and elimination of the cause.
Whereas, sinus bradycardia refers to heart rate less than 100/minute in infants and 60/ minutes in children.
This is seen in the following conditions:
– acute rheumatic fever
– acute nephritis
– scarlet fever
– increased intracranial pressure
– typhoid fever
– hypothyroidism
– potassium intoxication
– and in normal prematures and newborns
In children, sinus bradycardia does not require treatment but careful search for the underlying cause should be made.