Where is the AV node?
The AV node lies between the upper chambers of the heart (the atria) and the lower chambers of the heart, the ventricles. The AV node’s normal job in your heart is two-fold: (1) to permit the electrical impulse arising in the atrium to pass to the ventricles and (2) to delay the electrical impulse slightly to allow time for blood to physically move from the atria to the ventricles. What Does Tachycardia Mean? Tachycardia is a medical term that means, literally, “fast” (tachy-) “heart” (-cardia). In adults, tachycardia is usually defined as heart rates above 100, but patients with AV nodal reentrant tachycardia typically have heart rates from 150-200 beats per minute. Babies normal heart rates can be as high as 130-150 beats per minute, and their heart rates during periods of AV nodal reentrant tachycardia can be correspondingly faster. When the attacks of rapid heart rhythm are intermittent, the medical term for this is “paroxysmal.” Since AV nodal reentrant tachycardia is one form of
