Risk Factors For Premature Atrial Contractions

High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure (hypertension) will put any individual at a higher risk of developing numerous life-threatening diseases and conditions. Elevated blood pressure is especially hard on the heart muscle, as it forces the muscle to work much harder than normal to properly pump blood throughout the body. This can cause dangerous cardiomyopathies to form where the left ventricle walls stiffen and thicken to the point where it limits the ability of the left ventricle to correctly pump blood. In addition, hypertension can result in the development of coronary artery disease which is also associated with frequent premature atrial contractions. When the blood flow within the heart is interfered with by cardiomyopathy, clogged artery, or failure of the muscle, the heart rhythm can regularly get thrown off its normal electrical path and arrhythmias like premature atrial contractions occur. Before any of these dangerous heart complications develop as a result of high blood pressure, the general overstimulation of the heart due to hypertension alone can cause frequent premature atrial contractions.

Learn more about what increases an individual's risk of premature atrial contractions now.