Cardiovascular
Medicines for Slow heart rate (bradycardia)
A slower-than-usual heart rate, which can be normal and healthy (especially in fit people) or, if it causes symptoms, may need assessment and sometimes a pacemaker.
Education and reference only. This explains which medicines are used and why, in plain language — it deliberately contains no doses and is not a substitute for advice from your doctor or pharmacist. Always discuss your own treatment with a qualified clinician, and check the BNF and the product labelling for prescribing detail.
Quick answer
What is Slow heart rate (bradycardia)?
Bradycardia means a slow heart rate — generally a resting heart rate below about 60 beats per minute. Importantly, a slow heart rate is not always a problem: it can be entirely normal and healthy, particularly in physically fit people and athletes (whose hearts are efficient), and in many people during sleep.
- How it is treated: The approach depends on whether the slow heart rate is causing symptoms and what is behind it.
- Self-care: A slow heart rate in a fit person is often normal and healthy.
- When to seek help: See a GP if a slow heart rate comes with tiredness, dizziness, breathlessness, or reduced exercise ability, so it can be assessed.
What it is
Bradycardia means a slow heart rate — generally a resting heart rate below about 60 beats per minute. Importantly, a slow heart rate is not always a problem: it can be entirely normal and healthy, particularly in physically fit people and athletes (whose hearts are efficient), and in many people during sleep. The key question is whether the slow rate is causing symptoms or reflects a problem with the heart's electrical system. When bradycardia is too slow to meet the body's needs, it can cause symptoms such as tiredness, dizziness or light-headedness, breathlessness, reduced ability to exercise, and, if severe, fainting or near-fainting. Causes of a problematic slow heart rate include age-related changes or disease of the heart's natural pacemaker (the sinus node) or its electrical conduction system (such as heart block), an underactive thyroid, certain medicines (including some used for blood pressure or heart conditions), and other factors. So bradycardia ranges from a normal, healthy finding needing nothing, to a rhythm problem that needs treatment — and it is the symptoms and the cause that determine which.
How it is treated
The approach depends on whether the slow heart rate is causing symptoms and what is behind it. A slow heart rate with no symptoms, particularly in a fit person, often needs no treatment and may simply be monitored, as it can be normal. Where bradycardia causes symptoms, or where assessment suggests a problem with the heart's electrical system, it is investigated — with a heart tracing (ECG) and often a longer heart-rhythm monitor, along with blood tests (such as thyroid function) and a review of medicines that could be slowing the heart. Treatment then targets the cause: for example, adjusting or stopping a responsible medicine, treating an underactive thyroid, or, where the slow rate is due to a problem with the heart's conduction system and is causing significant symptoms, fitting a pacemaker — a small device that keeps the heart beating at an adequate rate, which is a very effective treatment for symptomatic bradycardia. A very slow heart rate causing collapse or severe symptoms is a medical emergency. The reassuring message is that a slow heart rate is often normal and harmless, but when it causes symptoms, the cause can be identified and treated effectively, including with a pacemaker where needed.
For this condition, these medicines
Medicine classes used for Slow heart rate (bradycardia)
Each links to a full, dose-free guide — what it is, how it works, who can and cannot use it, side effects, interactions and FAQs.
Beyond medication
Lifestyle and self-care
A slow heart rate in a fit person is often normal and healthy. If you have a slow heart rate, having any contributing medicines reviewed and any underactive thyroid treated helps. The key is seeking assessment if it causes symptoms such as dizziness, tiredness or fainting.
When to get help
When to see a doctor
See a GP if a slow heart rate comes with tiredness, dizziness, breathlessness, or reduced exercise ability, so it can be assessed. Seek urgent care (999) for fainting, near-collapse, chest pain, or severe breathlessness with a very slow pulse.
Not sure how urgent it is? It is always OK to call NHS 111 for advice, day or night.
Answers
Slow heart rate (bradycardia): frequently asked questions
Is a slow heart rate dangerous?
Not necessarily — a slow heart rate can be normal and healthy, especially in fit people and during sleep. It becomes a concern when it causes symptoms (such as dizziness, tiredness or fainting) or reflects a problem with the heart's electrical system, which should be assessed.
How is bradycardia treated?
It depends on the cause. A symptom-free slow rate often needs no treatment. Where it causes symptoms, treatment targets the cause — adjusting responsible medicines, treating an underactive thyroid, or, for a conduction problem, fitting a pacemaker, which is very effective.
Sources
Where this is drawn from
- NHS — Bradycardia / pacemakers
- British Heart Foundation guidance
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