Electrical System

You know that the beating of your heart helps pump blood to and from the other parts of your body. This is referred to as the “mechanical” function of the heart. What you may not know is that your heart is only able to beat because the body naturally produces electricity that travels across the heart muscle and stimulates it to contract or beat.

Normally, the electrical signal that tells your heart to beat comes from a small area in the upper right chamber, or right atrium, of your heart. This area is called the sinoatrial node, or SA node. When the SA node signals, a small electrical impulse runs through your heart and stimulates the heart muscle to contract in an organized manner. The contraction of the heart muscle produces a heartbeat, which forces blood out of your heart to the rest of your body. This rhythmic pumping of blood is what you feel when you take your pulse.

Sometimes, certain conditions can cause the heart’s electrical system to make the heart beat too slow, too fast or in an uncoordinated fashion. These irregularities are called arrhythmias and can occur in any of the four chambers of the heart.