Palpitations and tachycardia in menopause

The menopause is known as the last menstrual period and this event is accompanied by various physical and psychological changes result of the cessation of ovarian function can acquire a pathological dimension and require treatment.

What is menopause?

The menopause occurs between 45 and 50 years on average, with variations by race, country, personal and family history, habits, among others.

In this order of ideas, the main phenomenon is the cessation of ovarian function, with insufficient hormonal production to make the endometrium react – the uterus wall that undergoes changes and flakes producing the well-known menstrual bleeding due to ovarian hormones – ceasing to exist the usual cyclical bleeding.

The ovary has circular structures in its body that are called follicles, these grow and mature releasing oocytes – commonly known ovules – that every 28 days atrophy and give way to a new follicle to release one more oocyte.

The ovary has a limited number of follicles and as the years go by it depletes its reserves and ages, resulting in hormonal effects that will cause organic changes at the cardiovascular level.

The ovary loses the ability to produce estrogens, hormones that allow the existence of menstruation, creating an increase in sex hormones that produces the pituitary, a gland that controls the endocrine system and its main endocrine glands.

FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) is the hormone responsible for stimulating the maturation of the follicle that releases the oocyte and LH (luteinizing hormone) is responsible for allowing this release and producing the corpus luteum, which is nothing more than the atrophied follicle that remains in the ovary after ovulation that will produce progesterone, a hormone that helps maintain pregnancy for 14 days if the ovule is fertilized by sperm.

However, as the ovary is atrophied and the follicles are being depleted, FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) is released in large quantities in the absence of response from the ovary to carry out its normal cycle, while LH does not create spikes to allow the release of the oocyte.

By this, we mean that we are in the presence of an anovulatory cycle, that is, there is no normal cycle, all this because the follicles in the ovary are exhausted, there is no production of estrogens by the follicular cells and there is a huge increase in FSH hormone looking for follicular cells to grow resulting in their failed encounter and considerable increase.

Causes of palpitations in menopause.

The estrogens exert a protective role in cardiovascular risk and that is why, at the stage of menopause, in the absence of these hormones, there is an increased heartbeat that can become stronger than usual and be perceived as abnormal by women, all of this due to the lack of vasodilation exerted by estrogen in the blood vessels.

In addition, there is a decrease in a hormone called nitric oxide that increases the dilation of the blood vessels and when it decreases significantly, the heart rate increases since the heart will have to fill the blood vessels that now have a smaller diameter, exerting greater force and increasing the frequency.

Symptoms of tachycardia in menopause.

The main symptom is the appearance of stronger heartbeats, with longer pauses between two beats sometimes or beats more followed and stronger than usual. Especially at night and often related to periods of hot flashes and sweats characteristic of menopause.

It is important to note that tachycardia is defined by an increase in beats per minute above 100, a phenomenon that is evaluated by the physical examination performed by the doctor.

Treatment.

There is a non-hormonal treatment that includes a diet rich in calcium and low in cholesterol. You should restrict the intake of meat, avoid tobacco and increase the vitamin intake through vegetables or supplements.

On the other hand, physical exercise favors cardiovascular activity and protects the body from tachycardia and palpitations, it has been shown that swimming is the most beneficial sport for women in the menopausal stage.

In addition, there is hormone replacement treatment based on artificial estrogens to prevent physical deterioration of the body due to menopausal changes. In this case, the doctor must individualize the patient, explaining the risk/benefit ratio offered by this therapy and knowing that not every woman needs it.

It should be noted that there are certain contraindications such as breast neoplasms, endometrium, myxomatosis, liver failure, coagulation disorders and diabetes with vascular lesions that will alert the doctor not to apply this treatment. There is oral, patch, intradermal or implant treatment.

Each treatment helps prevent the characteristic symptoms of this stage, including palpitations and tachycardia, thus protecting the cardiovascular system and the heart, preventing its early aging and the gradual loss of myocardial function.

It is of utmost importance that when women enter this period of physical and mental changes, they go to the doctor to evaluate and carry out a complete and detailed medical history to offer the best treatment according to their metabolic and organic adaptation conditions to avoid the loss of heart function and the appearance of phenomena such as palpitations and tachycardia.

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