A person's pulse is an important indicator of the condition of the heart. A normal pulse indicates that the heart is working without disturbances. Every person needs to know how many beats per minute the heart should beat, but most people do not attach importance to such an important indicator and do not pay attention to its deviations.
Experts call the pulse a mirror of cardio-vascular system. If the pulse increases or, conversely, decreases, this indicates the development or consequence of an already developed pathological process in the heart. Therefore, if you detect a deviation in your heart rate from the norm, you should consult a doctor.
What is pulse
The pulse is a rhythmic oscillation of the vascular walls corresponding to heart contractions. Pulse is one of the main evaluation criteria normal operation of cardio-vascular system. This indicator indicates the rhythm of heart contractions, their strength and the filling of the bloodstream.
If the rhythm of the pulse fluctuations is disturbed, the doctor suspects the presence of heart pathology. The following factors can influence this:
- excessive consumption of coffee drinks;
- psychological overload;
- stressful conditions;
- hormonal imbalance.
In addition to the rhythm of the pulse, the frequency of its oscillations is important. Oscillation frequency is the number of pulse oscillations per minute. In a person without disorders of the cardiovascular system, in a calm psycho-emotional and physical condition this indicator ranges from 60 to 90 pulse waves per minute.
How to measure your pulse
The most common method is to measure your pulse radial artery. It lies on the wrist from the palm side two centimeters below the base thumb. Upon palpation, a person will feel a groove-shaped depression. The artery that is closest to the skin passes through this fossa. This arrangement of the vessel allows you to easily feel a person’s pulse.
To measure the pulse on the radial artery, you must perform the following steps:
- Relax the hand on which the pulse is measured.
- Place three fingers (index, middle and ring) in the hole in which the vessel lies, so that the person clearly feels the pulse wave.
- Open the stopwatch and time one minute, counting the number of vibrations of the vessel during this time.
- Record the results.
For reliable results, measurements should be taken on both hands at the same time.
If the pulse rhythm is not disturbed, you can measure the pulse for 30 seconds, and then multiply the result by two. If the rhythm of the pulse is disturbed, the measurement is carried out for 60 seconds.
In some cases, indicators are taken from the carotid, brachial, subclavian, femoral and temporal arteries.
What can disrupt your heart rate?
Since the number of pulse fluctuations depends on the heart rate, factors that directly affect the heart should be considered. The main factors on which vascular oscillation depends are:
- environment;
- person's gender;
- person's age;
- Lifestyle;
- food ration;
- heredity;
- physical exercise;
- mental stress.
Modern research suggests that females have a normal heart rate that is eight beats higher than males. The value can change up or down depending on general condition body, damage to the cardiovascular system or time of day. The pulse rate can be affected by the position of the body relative to a horizontal surface and even the air temperature in the room.
In the evening, the heart rate decreases, and in the morning it reaches its maximum value. For a man, the normal rate is 60-70 vibrations per minute.
Surprisingly, the normal rate for a newborn baby is 140 beats per minute. In an adult, this indicator is considered a strong deviation from the norm and is regarded as tachycardia.
Normal heart rate
The table shows normal heart rate indicators for children and adults by age. These indicators are typical only for healthy people who do not have hereditary or acquired pathologies of the cardiovascular system.
Based on the data in the table, we can conclude that at birth children experience high frequency heartbeat, which is considered normal. But with age, heart rate decreases, and after fifty years it increases again. Heart rate is the frequency of heart contractions, which corresponds to pulse fluctuations. In addition, doctors claim that just before death, a person’s pulse increases to 160 vibrations.
It should be taken into account that women during menopause experience a functional increase in heart rate. This occurs due to decreased concentration female hormone(estrogen) in the blood, and not due to heart pathology. During this period, changes in the normal blood pressure women.
Normal increase in heart rate
A high pulse is not always associated with the development of pathological changes in the body. In a healthy person, the pulse increases at following cases:
When body temperature rises even by one degree, the heart rate increases by more than ten beats per minute. In this state, the upper limit normal heartbeat is 90 beats per minute. If the indicator exceeds given value, the situation is regarded as tachycardia.
In the case when an increase in pulse wave frequency carries functional character, the person does not experience shortness of breath, pain in the chest, dizziness, darkening of the eyes or complete loss of vision.
The heart rate should not exceed maximum rate, characteristic of the patient’s age group. With functional tachycardia, the value returns to normal within five minutes after cessation of physical activity. To quickly calculate the maximum permissible value pulse, the number of complete years of the patient should be subtracted from the number 220.
Pathological increase
Tachycardia caused by pathological changes occurs in the following situations:
- purchased and congenital pathologies of cardio-vascular system;
- pathological changes nervous system;
- hypertensive crisis;
- hormonal imbalance;
- presence of tumors;
- cardiac ischemia;
- heart attack;
- human infectious diseases.
Doctors note cases when tachycardia occurs when heavy discharge during menstrual cycle or pregnancy. This occurs due to anemic syndrome. Prolonged diarrhea, vomiting or other massive loss of fluid in the body can cause pathologically rapid pulse.
Of particular importance are cases when there is increased heart rate during normal walking and normal pressure. If a person experiences this symptom, they should immediately contact a qualified professional for additional diagnostic measures. This condition may indicate the presence of heart failure.
In a child, a pathological increase in heart rate is much more difficult to track due to his lifestyle. Children are often involved in active games or experience intense emotional experiences, which leads to constant tachycardia. If a teenager has vegetative-vascular dystonia, the doctor will note a persistent increase in heart rate.
If you suspect a pathological increase in heart rate, you should consult with your doctor, because if you do not correct the body’s processes in time, problems may arise. sudden losses consciousness, deterioration general well-being, shortness of breath or attacks of dizziness.
Decreased heart rate
A decrease in heart rate to 60 beats per minute or below indicates a pathological or functional abnormality. Functional pulse deficit is observed during sleep or in professional athletes.
People who engage in professional sports experience a drop in heart rate to 40 beats per minute. This indicator is not a deviation from the norm, because athletes experience a number of changes in the autonomic regulation of heart contractions.
Experts note pathological bradycardia in the following cases:
- inflammatory processes affecting the fibers of the heart;
- intoxication of the body;
- myocardial infarction;
- changes in the cardiovascular system associated with human age;
- stomach ulcers;
- increased intracranial pressure;
- hypothyroidism;
- myxedema.
A common reason that causes low heart rate- This is a disturbance in the conduction of nerve fibers of the heart. This leads to uneven distribution of the electrical impulse along the fibers of the heart.
A slight decrease in the frequency of the pulse wave is difficult to feel on your own, but with more serious deviations, a person’s blood supply to the brain is disrupted. As a result, dizziness, weakness, clammy cold sweat and loss of consciousness.
We must not forget about the decrease in pulse wave frequency due to medication. Some groups medicines can cause bradycardia.
Diagnostics
In order to reliably determine the presence of a change in pulse, specialists use instrumental diagnostics of cardio-vascular system. The main method for identifying such abnormalities is electrocardiography (ECG).
In particular difficult situations Voltaire monitoring is prescribed. In this case, heart function is recorded throughout the day. If a person is healthy, then his indicators will correspond to the age or functional norm.
Less commonly used is a treadmill test, in which an electrocardiogram is taken from the patient while running. This method allows us to identify adaptation of the cardiovascular system to stressful situations and track the rate of restoration of normal heart function after exercise.
In an adult, identifying the cause of deviations is much more difficult to find out, because the number of factors affecting heart rate increases several times. With age, the elasticity of the walls of the bloodstream decreases. This occurs under the influence of the following factors:
- presence of bad habits;
- alcohol consumption;
- low mobility;
- poor nutrition;
- irregular daily routine;
- individual age-related changes in the body;
- disturbances in the functioning of the nervous system.
In people over 45 years of age, the body does not have time to adapt to constant changes in environmental conditions.
Stress, environment, lifestyle, congenital pathologies and the influence of many other factors lead to disorders in the cardiovascular system. Any violation in this system leads to a change in the normal heart rate and pulse rate. Therefore, it is very important to know what the pulse of a healthy person should be and monitor it.
Fedorov Leonid Grigorievich
Pulse is a word that every person has heard in life. But what it is and its exact concept is not known to everyone. The characteristics of the pulse can tell a lot about the state of health, give a signal about malfunctions in it, which will help identify pathology on early stage. You need to know all this to control your body, because the phrase “keep your finger on the pulse” is more relevant than ever.
Definition
IN general concept this term is a division into types of pulse. Each of them has its own standard values, which show the functioning of the entire organism.
Arterial
This is a rhythmic contraction of the walls of the arteries during the release of blood supplied by the contracting heart muscle. Pulse waves begin at the mouth of the aortic valve as the left ventricle of the heart ejects blood.
Its main wave is formed due to a surge in systolic pressure when the vascular bed expands, and when it declines, the walls take their original shape. Cyclic contractions of the myocardium create a rhythm of oscillation of the aortic surfaces, which leads to a mechanical pulse wave.
It passes first through large arteries, smoothly moving to small ones, and lastly to the capillaries.
Interesting! In the capillary network, the pulse readings are zero, which is why it is impossible to feel the pulse at the level of the arterioles, but the flow of blood in them is uniform and smooth.
Capillary
It is also called Quincke's pulse. This is the movement of capillaries, which is most often tested by pressing on the tip of the nail. Redness of the nail plate shows heart rate. Its manifestation is a deviation from the norm, because in a healthy person, the movement of blood through the capillary network should be continuous, since the precapillary sphincters work constantly.
If it appears, then we are talking about a significant fluctuation in diastolic pressure. The load prevents the precapillary sphincters from working fully. Pulse properties are observed in people with pathological failure aortic valve.
Venous
The heartbeat is reflected not only in the arterial bed, but also in the venous bed. If positive, it is diagnosed. But negative is considered to be normative, but it is not present in the small and medium venous network.
If we compare venous waves with arterial ones, then the first ones are smoother, even sluggish, with a longer period of rise than fall.
Basic characteristics of pulse
There are 6 main features:
Rhythm,which shows how cardiac oscillations alternate at equal intervals of time. Failure in cyclicity is typical for - lesions with additional signals or heart block due to non-conduction of the nerve impulse.
Frequency (HR)shows how many times the heart contracts in one minute. Palpation is carried out either with a tonometer. There are 2 types of deviations:
- less than 50 beats/min - occurs with slow cardiac activity;
- more than 90 beats/min is excessive muscle pulsation.
Magnitude, which directly depends on the tension and fullness of the blood flow. It is measured by the vibrations of the artery wall with the elasticity of the vessels, systole and diastole. There are 4 types of deviations:
- large, in which the arteries pump a huge volume of blood from increased tone bloodstream, which is typical for problems with the aortic valve and hyperfunction thyroid gland;
- small , which is most often provoked by narrowing of the aorta, cardiac tachycardia, excessive vascular elasticity;
- , in which it is difficult to feel the blows, this is caused by shock or severe blood loss;
- intermittent, provoked by oscillations of large and small waves, is diagnosed with severe myocardial damage.
Voltage- the force that is necessary to completely stop arterial blood flow. Directly depends on systolic pressure. There are deviations:
- tense due to high blood pressure;
- soft when the artery is blocked without effort.
Filling. This is the amount of blood that the artery ejects, which is reflected in the vibration of the vascular walls. Full pulse is the normative value of this indicator. With an empty pulse, the ventricles do not release a sufficient volume of blood into the arterial bed.
Formdepends on how quickly the pressure level changes when the heart muscle contracts and relaxes. Deviations from the norm are as follows:
- soon when the ventricles eject a lot of blood with increased elasticity of the vascular bed, which leads to sharp decline pressure during the decline of the wave, characteristic of aortic valve insufficiency and thyrotoxicosis;
- slow , which is characterized by small pressure drops, which indicates narrowing of the aortic walls or mitral valve insufficiency;
- announcer , diagnosed with an additional wave, which is associated with a decrease in tone in peripheral vessels With normal functioning myocardium.
Measurement methods
Pulsometry involves examining the pulse in a convenient place, most often the wrist, where the radial artery flows.
When palpated, the pulse is felt well, because the bloodstream is close to the skin. Sometimes contractions are checked by palpating the carotid, temporal, subclavian, brachial, or femoral arteries.
To complete the picture, you need to check the heart pulse in both arms. If the rhythm is good, the check takes half a minute, and the value is multiplied by 2. Athletes use heart rate monitors during exercise to show their heart rate. The device can include different functionality, but it is irreplaceable. This technique is quite accurate and is therefore recommended by the MoH.
There are cases when pulse measurements will not give accurate results, These include:
- hypothermia, extreme heat or prolonged exposure to sunlight;
- drinking hot food and drinks;
- smoking and alcohol;
- a quarter of an hour after intercourse;
- 30 minutes after a relaxing bath or massage;
- severe hunger;
- premenstrual and menstrual period.
Pulse rates
The meaning may vary depending on age, gender and physical activity patient.
Normal heart rate for people different ages can be determined from the following table.
In athletes
For people with increased physical activity, heart rate results and its standard values are very important, because their health directly depends on it. Excessive overload is quite dangerous and can lead to serious consequences, including heart attack, which often occurs with arrhythmia. During physical activity, your heart rate will always be higher than at rest. When walking, this value is on average 100 beats/min, and when running it can reach up to 150.
Interesting! It's easy to check your health using your pulse. To do this, you need to go up to the 3rd floor at normal speed and measure your heart rate. At rates up to 100 beats/min physical form a person is considered excellent, if it is 15-20 beats above this value, then it is necessary to go in for sports to get the body in order.
For athletes, standard values have been established at which the load on the body will be normal. On average, with a pulse of 100-130 beats/min, it is permissible to increase activity to values of 130-150 beats/min. An indicator of 200 beats/min is considered critical and the one at which activity activity needs to be reduced, as this will negatively affect the functioning of the entire cardiovascular system.
Usually, it takes about 5 minutes for a healthy person to return his pulse after training; if this does not happen, then the cardiovascular system is not working correctly, which may be evidence of a serious pathology.
What does heart rate depend on?
Heart rate characteristics may vary depending on various factors, such as environment, age, physiological or pathological causes. The gender of a person is also important, as a woman’s heart beats at a higher speed than a man’s. To summarize, heart rate largely depends on the reasons:
- Physiological, such as load, stress, food consumption and digestion. There are drinks that have a significant effect on the pulse. These are caffeine-containing products, including Coca-Cola and alcohol. Smokers also have a faster heart rate. Sleep and monotonous work help slow down the process of ventricular fibrillation and the ejection of blood.
- Pathological, for example, infectious diseases, hypertension, neoplasms, asthma, bronchitis, heart attack, large blood loss. Often the cause of a slow heart rate is by-effect some medical supplies. If the heart is malfunctioning, then the pulse waves will be irregular, and if the veins in the arms and legs are blocked, they will be completely absent.
Possible pathologies
A certain state of a person’s pulse may indicate that there is something going on in his body. pathological process. There are general indicators characteristic of certain diseases.
With high heart rate
Tachycardia most often occurs with the following pathologies:
- heart disease, which even at rest gives;
- malfunction of the nervous system;
- disruption of activity endocrine system;
- benign and malignant neoplasms;
- infectious diseases.
Diabetes mellitus also provokes high pulse values, which is natural with such a disruption in the production of hormones. For diabetics, this is a signal that it is necessary to take measures to improve the condition, for example, by taking the right medicine.
For high heart rate and blood pressure fluctuations
In only three cases such a condition can be considered normative:
- Strong psycho-emotional stress, such as fear, horror, anxiety, great joy, excitement, euphoria. An excited nervous system produces adrenaline, which constricts the vascular bed, leading to increased heart rate and increased blood pressure. When emotions subside, everything returns to its original state.
- Excessive physical activity, such as sports or hard work. For such actions the body needs a large number of oxygen, which it receives by increasing the pressure and contraction of the heart muscle.
- Abuse of alcohol, coffee and strong tea. In the last two cases, the culprit is caffeine, which tones the body, and alcohol contains many toxins that lead to tension in the cardiovascular system.
But often this condition is a sign of pathology, such as a neoplasm in the adrenal glands, which begin to produce excess hormones, which is comparable to the effect of adrenaline. The pathological functioning of this organ is also characteristic of Addison's disease.
Hyperthyroidism, neurogenic and psychogenic diseases also lead to problems with pulse and blood pressure. Hypertensive patients and patients with endocrine, renal, vascular pathologies also at risk.
With low heart rate
Bradycardia of a pathological type is not uncommon for:
- pre-infarction and post-infarction state and the attack itself;
- inflammatory process or muscle intoxication;
- changes in blood vessels and heart due to age;
- increased intracranial pressure;
- ulcers;
- myxedema;
- hypothyroidism.
Atony also leads to disruptions in heart rate and even increases this figure to 50 beats/min. Decreased heart rate- this is the result of a violation of the excretory system of the heart when electrical impulses the myocardium is not working properly. Slight glitch sinus rhythm usually does not give any special signs and the patient does not pay attention to it. When a healthy person’s pulse drops, this will manifest itself in:
- dizziness;
- weaknesses;
- cold sweat;
- loss of consciousness;
- in critical cases - hypoxia.
Drug-induced bradycardia is often encountered, the signs of which are some pharmaceuticals. The idiopathic form of bradycardia does not have established reasons, but no less dangerous for humans, especially with pathologies of the cardiovascular system.
Depending on age and physical activity, a healthy adult's heart rate may change over the years. The resting heart rate is minimal, since the body in this state does not need additional energy.
A normal heart rate for an adult between the ages of 18 and 50 should be between 60 and 100 beats per minute.
About the human pulse
Oxygen enters human organs and tissues with blood flowing through arteries (blood vessels through which blood is carried from the heart) under a certain pressure - arterial. This causes oscillation arterial walls. The forward and reverse movement of blood to the heart also (normally) causes emptying and filling of the veins. Under the influence of blood pressure, red blood cells (red blood cells) are forced through capillaries (the thinnest blood vessels), overcoming high resistance; Electrolytes (substances that conduct electric current) pass through their walls.
This creates pulse beats that are felt throughout the body, in all vessels. An amazing phenomenon! Although in reality it is a pulse wave - a wave of movements of the walls of blood vessels under pressure, which is very fast and sounds like a short sound. The number of these waves normally corresponds to the number of heart contractions.
How to calculate?
Most affordable way measuring heart rate is palpation, a manual method based on touch. Quick and simple, it does not require special training.
To obtain the most accurate readings, place your index finger and middle fingers and count your heart rate in 60 seconds. You can use more in a fast way, determining the pulse for 20 seconds and multiplying the resulting value by 3.
The easiest way to determine the pulse is in the wrist area.
Before measuring the pulse, the person should be in a quiet position for some time, preferably sitting or lying down. It is better to count for at least a minute, otherwise the accuracy may not be sufficient. The easiest way to measure your pulse on your own is your wrist and neck.
To palpate the radial artery, you need to place the hand being palpated, preferably the left (since it is closer to the heart), palm up at the level of the heart. You can place it on a horizontal surface. Place the pads of the index and middle fingers together, straight but relaxed, on the wrist or just below. From the base of the thumb, if you press lightly, you should feel a rush of blood.
The carotid artery is also probed with two fingers. You need to look for it by tracing the skin from the base of the jaw to the throat from top to bottom. In a small hole, the pulse will be felt best, but you should not press hard, since pinching the carotid artery can lead to fainting (for the same reason, you should not measure the pressure by palpating both carotid arteries simultaneously).
Both independent and regular medical measurement of the pulse is quite simple, but important procedure prevention, which should not be neglected.
What to do if the pulse does not match the heart rate?
- in the wrist area;
- on the inner surface of the elbow;
- on the side of the neck;
- in the groin area.
However, if your heart rate does not always match your heart rate. It can be determined by applying a medical phonendoscope to the left half chest, approximately at the point of intersection of the vertical line crossing the middle of the collarbone and the horizontal line going through axillary area. The phonendoscope can be moved to find the point with the best audibility of heart sounds.
In medicine, heart rate is determined using an electrocardiogram - a recording of electrical signals that are generated in the heart and cause it to contract. Long-term recording of heart rate for a day or more is carried out using Holter ECG monitoring.
Why can heart rate change at rest?
The main factors influencing changes in heart rate:
- when the temperature and/or humidity increases, the heart rate increases by 5 – 10 beats per minute;
- when moving from a lying position to a vertical one, heart rate increases in the first 15–20 seconds, then returns to its original value;
- heartbeat increases with stress, anxiety, expressed emotions;
- in people with large weight, the heart rate is usually higher than in people of the same age and gender, but with normal body weight;
- with fever, an increase in temperature of 1 degree is accompanied by an increase in heart rate by 10 beats per minute; There are exceptions to this rule, when heart rate does not increase so much - this is typhoid fever, sepsis and some variants of viral hepatitis.
Reasons for the slowdown
First of all, you need to make sure that the pulse measurement is carried out technically correctly. A heart rate less than 60 per minute is not always associated with health problems. It can be caused by medications such as beta blockers.
Rare heartbeat (up to 40 per minute) is often observed in physically active people or professional athletes. This is due to the fact that their heart muscle contracts very well and is able to maintain normal blood flow without additional effort. Below we provide tables that allow you to roughly determine a person’s physical fitness by his resting heart rate.
Heart diseases such as ischemic heart disease, endocarditis, myocarditis, as well as some other diseases - hypothyroidism (insufficient hormonal activity of the thyroid gland) or an imbalance of electrolytes in the blood can lead to a slow heartbeat.
Reasons for the increase
The most common reason accelerated heart rate - inadequate rest before measurement. It is best to measure this indicator in the morning after waking up, without getting out of bed. You should also make sure that your heart rate is counted correctly.
Children and adolescents have a higher heart rate than adults. Other factors that increase heart rate:
- use of caffeine or other stimulants;
- recent smoking or drinking alcohol;
- stress;
- high blood pressure.
Most illnesses increase heart rate, including fever, birth defects heart, hyperthyroidism.
Heart rate tables by age
To find out whether your heart rate is normal for healthy people, it should be measured and compared with the indicators presented in the table by age. In this case, a deviation from the specified standard will in most cases indicate unsatisfactory functioning of the vascular walls or incorrect operation circulatory system generally.
For men
Physical state 1 age category 2nd age category 3 age category 4 age category 5 age category 6 age category Age table for men 18 - 25 years old 26 - 35 years old 36 - 45 years old 46 - 55 years old 56 - 65 years old 65 and older Athletes 49-55 beats min. 49-54 beats min. 50-56 beats min. 50-57 beats min. 51-56 beats min. 50-55 beats min. Excellent 56-61 beats min. 55-61 beats min. 57-62 beats min. 58-63 beats min. 57-61 beats min. 56-61 beats min. good 62-65 beats min. 62-65 beats min. 63-66 beats min. 64-67 beats min. 62-67 beats min. 62-65 beats min. Better than average 66-69 beats min. 66-70 beats min. 67-70 beats min. 68-71 beats min. 68-71 beats min. 66-69 beats min. Average 70-73 beats min. 71-74 beats min. 71-75 beats min. 72-76 beats min. 72-75 beats min. 70-73 beats min. Worse than average 74-81 beats min. 75-81 beats min. 76-82 beats min. 77-83 beats min. 76-81 beats min. 74-79 beats min. Bad 82+ beats min. 82+ beats min. 83+ beats min. 84+ beats min. 82+ beats min. 80+ beats min. What a person’s pulse is is affected by his fitness level and the habit of frequent exercise that requires endurance - for example, running at moderate and long distances, walking, rowing, cycling, swimming. The heart muscle of such athletes is able to pump the same volume of blood in fewer contractions (athletic heart syndrome).
For women
Physical state 1 age category 2nd age category 3 age category 4 age category 5 age category 6 age category Age table for women 18 - 25 years old 26 - 35 years old 36 - 45 years old 46 - 55 years old 56 - 65 years old 65 years and older Athletes 54-60 beats min. 54-59 beats min. 54-59 beats min. 54-60 beats min. 54-59 beats min. 54-59 beats min. Excellent 61-65 beats min. 60-64 beats min. 60-64 beats min. 61-65 beats min. 60-64 beats min. 60-64 beats min. good 66-69 beats min. 65-68 beats min. 65-69 beats min. 66-69 beats min. 65-68 beats min. 65-68 beats min. Better than average 70-73 beats min. 69-72 beats min. 70-73 beats min. 70-73 beats min. 69-73 beats min. 69-72 beats min. Average 74-78 beats min. 73-76 beats min. 74-78 beats min. 74-77 beats min. 74-77 beats min. 73-76 beats min. Worse than average 79-84 beats min. 77-82 beats min. 79-84 beats min. 78-83 beats min. 78-83 beats min. 77-84 beats min. Bad 85+ beats min. 83+ beats min. 85+ beats min. 84+ beats min. 84+ beats min. 84+ beats min. Movement helps train the blood organs; Cardio exercise (from the Greek kardio, heart) with regularity significantly increases both life length and its quality. And they don't require any special means: even an ordinary walk (not even necessarily every day!) with a subjectively fast step instead of immobility fundamentally improves the condition.
The human heart is a muscular organ that pumps blood through the vessels through rhythmic contractions. Duration of one cardiac cycle(muscle contraction) is about one second.
Long-time doctors paid attention to this indicator and it turned out that it can act as an indicator of the state of the body. In the third century BC, Herophilus of Chalcedon published the work “Peri sphigmon pragmateias”, which stated that by the movement of the arteries (as the scientist called pulsation), one can determine the presence of diseases in the body and predict their development in the future.
Now pulse is one of the basic biomarkers that allows you to make a primary assessment of the state of the cardiovascular system.
Types of pulse
There are three types of pulse:
- arterial,
- venous,
- capillary.
The arterial pulse shows jerky (the word comes from the Latin pulsus - push) oscillations of the arterial walls with a certain rhythm, which correspond to the rhythm of contraction of the heart muscle - the basis of the circulatory system.
The venous pulse is recorded in large veins that are located near the heart. It is his measurements that are most often demonstrated in films, when to determine the death of a person, the pulse is felt on the jugular vein on the neck.
Capillary pulse is most different from the classical understanding of this term. This term refers to the intensity of the color of the skin under the nail when pressed. His presence is not permanent. Appears with certain problems.
All types of vascular pulsation are synchronous with each other and with contractions of the heart muscle. Most often, when talking about the pulse, they understand the arterial type. Let's look at it in more detail.
Heart rate characteristics
The pulse is assessed according to six characteristics. The most well-known is frequency, which is not the only indicator for assessing pulsation. In terms of importance, frequency is also not the most important. More precisely, they are all equally important when assessing this parameter.
Arterial pulse is assessed by:
- frequency,
- rhythm,
- filling,
- tension,
- height,
- speed.
Let's consider each characteristic separately.
Pulse rate
The most popular characteristic of arterial pulsation. This is due to the simplicity of the assessment.
Pulse rate is the number of pulse fluctuations per minute. Normally, it corresponds to the heart rate.
General table normal indicators heart rate looks like this:
What can you notice from the table? Each group has a wide range normal values pulse But even with such a spread, not everyone is taken into account.
The pulse rate can go beyond the norm not only in patients, but also in trained athletes. In case of health problems, the pulse frequency goes beyond the range of normal values; in case of training, it decreases.
Pulse rhythm
This indicator characterizes the rhythm with which pulse fluctuations occur. In terms of rhythm, the pulse can be rhythmic or arrhythmic.
A pulse with equal intervals between pulse waves is called rhythmic. If the duration of the intervals differs, then the pulse is arrhythmic.
Pulse filling
A subjective characteristic that is assessed by the sensations of the person performing the palpation.
According to filling, the pulse is:
- moderate,
- filiform,
- empty,
- full.
It is determined by clamping the artery and restoring pulsation after releasing the clamped vessel. In a healthy person this indicator is moderate. A full pulse occurs when the stroke volume of the heart muscle increases and the blood volume increases. This happens when physical activity: instant or permanent.
A weak pulse, accordingly, is characteristic of a low level of circulating blood and a weak shock output.
Thread-like pulse - a person is on the verge of life and death. Life systems practically do not function.
Pulse voltage
A subjective characteristic showing the force with which the artery must be pressed in order to completely clamp it. According to filling, the pulse is:
- moderate,
- hard,
- soft.
Pulse shape or speed
Characteristic arterial pulse, which shows the rate at which the volume of the artery changes when a pulse wave passes through it. The shape is measured using special procedure– sphygmography. Pulse speed is:
- fast,
- slow
- dicrotic.
Pulse height
This characteristic shows the range in which vibrations of the arterial walls occur and is fixed by overall assessment tension and pulsation filling. The height of the pulse is:
- moderate,
- big,
- small.
Method of measuring heart rate
Since the most common and popular characteristic of arterial pulsation is frequency, it will be analyzed in more detail.
The popularity of frequency is due to the ease of its measurement.
Anyone can measure arterial pulsation. To do this, you need to sit in a quiet corner, place a stopwatch near you and with two fingers (middle and index) press the radial artery on the wrist. It's easy to find: it's located on inside wrist from the thumb side. When you press it, you will feel a distinct pulsation with your fingers. Having caught it, you begin to count the blows, timing one minute. Some people advise timing 30 seconds and multiplying the result by two, but a minute measurement will still be more accurate.
In addition to the radial artery, the pulse can be measured in almost all arteries. The popularity of radiation is due to the ease of access to it.
What does heart rate depend on?
A person’s arterial pulse is an indicator that depends on many indicators. Therefore, the ranges of normal values for the indicator for different age categories are very wide. To clearly show the dependence of heart rate on various factors, we present them in table form:
Impact on pulse The age-related pulse curve resembles the letter “U”. In infants, the pulse is high - the heart is just forming and it needs more contractions to pump blood. In a healthy adult, the pulse decreases, and in an elderly person, it increases again due to the fact that the heart muscle can no longer pump blood effectively enough. Under conditions of low ambient temperature, a narrowing occurs blood vessels, and blood circulation slows down. To maintain normal blood circulation, fewer contractions of the heart muscle are needed - the pulse decreases.
At high temperature the process takes place in reverse order: The blood vessels dilate, and to fill them the heart needs to pump blood more often. Dehydration of the body makes the blood thicker. To pump it, the heart begins to work harder, arterial pulsation becomes more frequent. Stress provokes arousal sympathetic division autonomic nervous system, which activates the work of most vital systems, including the heart. The pulse increases. The mechanism is similar to stressful situations. Under emotional stress, the pulsation becomes more frequent. The genetic factor has not been thoroughly studied. But the fact that two healthy people of the same age and the same level of fitness can have a significantly different pulse indicates great influence genetics on this indicator. One of the main factors influencing heart rate. In professional athletes, the resting heart rate can differ significantly from that of a person who does not exercise. This is due to the fitness of the heart muscle, which pumps a larger volume of blood in one cycle.
Normal human pulse by year
Normal values of arterial pulsation by year are set in fairly wide ranges. They were arrived at experimentally: they took a fairly large sample of healthy people of the same age, measured everyone’s heart rate at rest, discarded extremely low and extremely high values, and obtained a range accepted as the norm.
Let's consider the normal indicators for each age category and let’s figure out why they differ in one direction or another from neighboring age groups.
Newborn heart rate
In newborns, the pulse fluctuations of the arteries at rest are the highest in comparison with other age categories. The normal range is considered to be 100-150 beats per minute. But even it does not fit all situations.
It is quite common for a newborn's heart rate to slow to 70 beats per minute. However, no pathologies were observed, and they did not develop in the future.
Such a high normal pulse can be explained simply: the child encounters the outside world for the first time, his body is in constant state emotional excitement, the small heart is just learning to fully pump blood.
Baby's pulse
At the age of three to six months, the baby's resting heart rate begins to slow down and 90-120 beats per minute are considered normal. The body gets used to the new life, level emotional stress decreases, the heart grows and gets used to working in new conditions.
As with newborns, children at this age may also have significant differences from the norm, but they are no longer as common.
Pulse of a child under ten years of age
Normal indicators of arterial pulsation frequency are numbers in the range of 70-130 beats per minute. This is the largest range among all age categories. This is due to the large differences in the growth and development of each child.
In some people, the body develops faster and muscles, including the heart, are formed at an earlier age. And there are children who, even by the age of ten, are absolutely not physiologically formed.
Pulse of a teenager aged 10-20 years
At this age, the human body is fully formed. Children practically level out in development. Their main indicators become commensurate. At this age, the range of normal pulse fluctuations at rest is 60-100 beats per minute. In comparison with the previous age group, one can see a narrowing of the range and a lowering of the lower limit.
The heart of teenagers becomes an adult, capable of working in optimal mode. The number of departures outside the normal range is minimal.
Pulse of a person at 30 years old
IN general classification Normal heart rate indicators for different age categories for all adults indicate a range of 60-100 beats per minute. It is accepted unconditionally by almost all doctors.
But there is also a narrower distribution. According to it, for people aged 21-30 years, a pulse in the range of 65-80 beats per minute is considered normal. In women, the indicators are often shifted to the upper limit, in men – to the lower limit. Last fact explained statistically large size hearts compared to a woman of similar build. And a larger heart pumps a larger volume of blood in one contraction, so fewer contractions are needed.
At this age, the human body is in its prime. The heart is fully formed and works optimally. There are no age-related deteriorations in the functioning of vital systems. The pulse rate of a healthy person aged 20-30 years can be considered the reference.
Pulse of a person at 40 years old
In the fourth decade of life normal frequency pulse fluctuations at rest remain in the same range as in the previous age group– 65-80 beats per minute. At the same time, there are slightly more cases of pulse falling beyond the upper limit, which is associated with the beginning of the development of the first age-related changes in organism.
Pulse of a person at 50 years old
In the period of 40-50 years, the boundaries of the range of normal values of arterial pulse begin to expand according to upper limit and are approaching the indicator that is generally accepted for adults. The normal heart rate is 65-90 beats per minute. The wider gradation is due to many individual characteristics of the onset of aging of the body, as well as the increased importance of other factors that at a young age could be compensated by internal resources.
As before, women have a slightly higher heart rate than men, but at the age of about 50 this difference practically disappears.
Pulse of a person aged 60 years and older
Normal heart rate limits are the most difficult to determine in older people. At an older age, it is difficult to find an absolutely healthy person, including one without heart problems. And any health problems can affect the frequency of arterial pulsation.
The generally accepted norm for heart rate in old age is the range of 60-90 beats per minute at rest. Changes in any direction are a reason to immediately consult a doctor, as this is one of the first signals of heart problems.
Cases of heart rate abnormalities in healthy people in this age category are rare.
Summary table of normal heart rate values at different ages
Let's summarize all of the above in the form of a summary table:
| Age group | Normal heart rate at rest |
| From birth to three months |
Pulse, or, in other words, heart rate - the most important indicator state of human health. The figures obtained from the measurement have great value during diagnosis various diseases. However, these indicators can change under the influence of many factors, so it is necessary to know the normal pulse rate of a person by age so as not to miss the onset of the development of pathology.
Heart rate is the vibration of the walls of blood vessels as the heart contracts and blood moves through them. In this case, the measured value signals the functioning of the cardiovascular system. By the number of beats per minute, pulse strength and other parameters, you can evaluate the elasticity of blood vessels and the activity of the heart muscle. Together with the indicators (BP), these figures make it possible to create a complete picture of the state of the human body.
The normal heart rate for males and females is slightly different. Ideal values are rarely recorded. Healthy man most time is in motion, experiencing, so the indicators vary up or down.
When determining the pulse and comparing it with tabular norms, it should be remembered that each organism has individual characteristics. As a result, even in a calm state, indicators may differ from optimal ones. If the patient is feeling normal, unpleasant symptoms are absent, then such deviations from the norm are not considered pathology.
If the normal pulse deviates in an adult, the reason that led to such changes is determined. Independent heart rhythm disturbances are quite rare; most often they are the result of some disease. The following deviations are distinguished:
- rapid pulse, over 100 beats per minute (tachycardia);
- slow heartbeat, less than 60 beats per minute ().
Important: After 40 years, you must visit a cardiologist at least once a year and undergo a thorough examination. Many pathologies of the cardiovascular system are asymptomatic and early diagnosis will help avoid the development of complications.
Pulse: influence of various factors
Changes in heart rate occur under the influence of external and internal factors. The number of heart beats per minute can be affected by a person’s age, gender, physical and psycho-emotional stress, air temperature, body temperature and much more.
Age
The pulse at rest or at night during sleep, depending on the age of the person, differs significantly. In newborns, the heart rate is the highest - over 130 beats/min. This is explained by the fact that the heart is small and must contract more often to supply the whole body with blood.
As you grow older, your heart rate becomes much lower and by the age of 18 the normal heart rate is 60-90 beats/min. This frequency persists for many years with slight fluctuations. The changes observed in older people depend not only on age, but also on the presence of existing diseases. 
Loading...