Comments on: Is a heart rate of 78 is normal than an apical pulse greater than 84?

By: Agnodice

Agnodice — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 19:34:59 +0000

Normally, the pulse rate matches the apical pulse. There are a few conditions in which the apical pulse could be higher the palpable pulse in the radial or carotid artery. Basically it would be secondary to a heart beat that does not lead to enough cardiac output to produce a palpable pulse in the arteries. This can occur with premature atrial or ventricular heart beats and also with atrial fibrillation. The technical term is a pulse deficit. The more likely explanation is error or just a variation in the heart rate. Remember that heart rate varies from second to second. If you listened for a minute at the apex and then you felt the pulse for a minute, you may get a slightly different reading. The most accurate way to determine the true heart rate is to listen with your stethoscope at the apex of the heart for 1 minute. This is especially important in people with atrial fibrillation, because they have a known pulse deficit. If you just palpated their pulse, then you would not get an accurate ventricular rate.

Normal heart rate is 50-100. Therefore both of these values are within normal limits. I suspect the differences are secondary to error and nothing to worry about. Good luck.
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Physician

By: TweetyBird

TweetyBird — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:44:59 +0000

A heart rate is the same as an apical pulse but a peripheral pulse is not the same thing as either of these. Your question is grammatically confusing — "Is a heart of 78 is normal (?) than an apical pulse greater than 84 (??)". Did you read it before you posted it? What is it you’re asking?

A peripheral pulse should be the same as an apical pulse (heart rate). You can’t say that the apical is "greater than". You have to provide a specific rate if you wish to compare an apical to a peripheral. The difference between an apical pulse and a peripheral pulse is called the pulse deficit. Subtract the peripheral pulse count (usually the radial but not always) from the apical and that’s your deficit.
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I’m a nurse.

By: aziz

aziz — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:39:59 +0000

yes it is normal, but i dnt understand why u used different terms for same thing , it will be confusing for the answerers
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doc

By: Bud

Bud — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:24:59 +0000

The apical pulse should be nearly equal to the radial pulse. In a healthy individual the only difference may be in the perception of these pulse rates. With the apical pulse, in some cases, a beat or two may be missed if the patient is obese or very muscular in the chest area. If the apical pulse is much higher than the radial pulse, (say 110 vs. 84) then a problem exists and it definitely should be checked out. This would only occur in an individual whose heart is too weak to send blood to the peripheral arteries. In this case it would be difficult to feel the pulse at the wrist, so several beats may be missed. Most cardiologists agree that a normal resting pulse is in the range of 60 to 90 beats/minute. So you are ok at either 78 or 84 beats/minute. The difference in your pulse rates is not great enough to be overly concerned about. If the difference is great enough you would be feeling some of the symptoms normally associated with a weak heart. (shortness of breath upon exertion of any kind, for one)
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By: Janus_108

Janus_108 — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 17:40:59 +0000

Yeah that's within normal range. Don't worry, you're not going to die just yet.
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