QUALITY-OF-LIFE ASSESSMENT IN PATIENTS WITH PAROXYSMAL ATRIAL-FIBRILLATION OR PAROXYSMAL SUPRAVENTRICULAR TACHYCARDIA

Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) and paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) are common supraventricular arrhythmias. Patients with these arrhythmias report symptoms of palpitations, dizziness, dyspnea, and diaphoresis during episodes of these tachycardias, and they are often treated with antiarrhythmic drugs to reduce symptomatic recurrences.1 Interventional catheterization and surgical procedures are available to patients who remain disabled despite antiarrhythmic therapy.2-4 Despite the prevalence of patients with these disorders and the expense and risk of the therapies used, little is known about how patients perceive disability due to these disorders and what coping strategies they use during recurrences of their arrhythmias. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to assess functional disability and coping strategies in patients with well-characterized attacks of paroxysmal AF or paroxysmal SVT. © 1994.