2009-02-07&2009-02-09 脉搏快有问题？（在线收听）

So how is it, doc? It goes alright? Good. OK. I have my pulse checked coz Jim from Texas says his pulse is fast, really fast and he'd like to know if he should worry about it. Is a fast pulse an indication of anything specific?

Well, you'd know the normal pulse rate is set to be between 80 and 100. Anything more rapid than that is abnormal. Well, there are things you know that cause a fast pulse, you get excited, you are fearful, you are anxious, you are stressed, you have fever. Those are all things that give you a fast pulse. But having a fast pulse all the time when you are just sitting around is not right.

The first thing I suggest you have checked is your thyroid. An overactive thyroid will give you a rapid pulse. There are other causes and you have to determine whether the rapidity, the speed of the pulse is associated with an irregularity. I mean, is the pulse rapid but regular, bong bong bong, or is it irregular bong bong bongbongbong bong, that would be atrial fibrillation. So the first thing you have to determine is if your pulse is regular.

Now I'm assuming that your pulse is regular. Anaemia will cause it. If your thyroid is normal, have your blood checked because anaemia causes a rapid heart rate. In women there is a very common abnormality of, which is not a dangerous one in most cases. It's called mitral valve prolapse. It's a deformity of one of the valves in the heart and some women with mitral valve prolapse have a rapid pulse.

Also medications can do it. If you drink a lot of coffee, your pulse is gonna be rapid, and smoking can increase it too and other medications that you are taking. So the first thing to do if you think you have a rapid pulse, count it and then give that number to your doctor, see whether it's regular. If it's irregular, you should have an electrical cardiogram to see if there are extra beats. But that's the story we'll...

And I remember when I was a candy striper, don't use your thumb, 'cause it has its own pulse. (Why doctors use their fingers? Yes. Smart! OK. Alright.)