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Emergency Care · Beaumont, TX · Open 24/7
Palpitations are the feeling that your heart is pounding, racing, fluttering or skipping. They are often harmless and linked to caffeine, stress or exercise. They need emergency attention when they come with chest pain, shortness of breath, fainting or dizziness, or when they will not stop. Eastex Emergency Room in Beaumont is open 24/7 and can record your heart rhythm while symptoms are happening.
These combinations can mean a dangerous heart rhythm or a heart attack. Let EMS come to you; paramedics can monitor and treat your rhythm on the way.
Do not drive yourself if you have any of these symptoms. Call 911.
Symptoms
People describe palpitations in many ways. You may feel them in your chest, throat or neck. The heart’s rhythm can be normal or abnormal when you feel them.
Possible Causes
Many causes are not dangerous, but some heart rhythm problems need treatment. The pattern of symptoms helps, but an EKG is usually needed to know for sure.
Caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, energy drinks, stress, poor sleep, exercise and some cold medicines.
Atrial fibrillation, supraventricular tachycardia and other arrhythmias, some of which need prompt treatment.
Dehydration, anemia, an overactive thyroid, low potassium, fever, pregnancy and some medicines or drugs.
Your Evaluation
The first goal is to see your heart rhythm and make sure it is safe. The second is to look for a cause.
A tracing of your heart rhythm, repeated if needed.
Blood and urine tests run on site.
Imaging for bones, chest and some foreign bodies.
Fluids and medicines through an IV when you need them.
The tests above are the diagnostic services Eastex ER lists on its own service pages. Not every patient needs every test. The emergency physician decides what to order based on your history and exam, and a normal result does not rule out every cause. Always follow your discharge instructions and the follow-up plan you are given.
Eastex ER is a freestanding emergency room. It does not have a cardiac catheterization lab, a cardiology unit or inpatient beds. If testing shows a heart attack, a dangerous rhythm, or a condition that needs a cardiologist or hospital monitoring, the team stabilizes you and arranges transfer.
If you have none of the 911 warning signs, sit or lie down, breathe slowly, and pay attention to how you feel. Try to note the time it started. If you have a home blood pressure cuff or a smartwatch that shows heart rate or rhythm, a reading can be useful information for the doctor, but it does not replace an EKG. Avoid more caffeine, nicotine and energy drinks.
Occasional brief skipped beats, without other symptoms, in someone without heart disease are common. They still deserve a conversation with your primary care doctor, especially if they are new, happen more often, or worry you. Your doctor may suggest reducing caffeine and alcohol, improving sleep, and may order tests or a heart monitor.
People with known heart disease, a past heart attack, heart failure, a heart valve problem, high blood pressure, diabetes, thyroid disease, or who are pregnant, should get new or different palpitations evaluated promptly. So should anyone whose palpitations come with exercise, or who has a family history of sudden cardiac death.
Planning Your Visit
Bring a list of every medicine and supplement you take, and any heart monitor or smartwatch readings you captured during symptoms.
5550 Eastex Fwy, Suite C, Beaumont, TX 77708. Open 24 hours, every day. Call 409-800-1100.
Photo ID, insurance card and a list of your medicines and allergies, if you can grab them safely.
See which plans we work with and what to expect as a freestanding emergency room.
How emergency visits are billed, and who to contact with questions about a bill.
FAQs
Short answers to questions people ask before they come in.
If symptoms are severe or getting worse, call 911. For questions about coming in, call Eastex ER any time.
409-800-1100Go now, or call 911, if palpitations come with chest pain, shortness of breath, fainting, dizziness, sweating or confusion, or if a fast heartbeat will not settle with rest. Brief, occasional palpitations without other symptoms can usually be checked by your doctor.
Yes, stress and anxiety are common triggers. But anxiety can also be a reaction to a real rhythm problem, so new or severe palpitations should not be assumed to be anxiety without an evaluation.
Yes. Caffeine, nicotine and other stimulants are common triggers. Cutting back often helps.
The doctor may still find useful clues on an EKG and in blood tests, and may recommend a heart monitor you wear at home to catch the next episode.
It depends on the cause and how you feel. Fever, dehydration, pain and anxiety can raise heart rate. A fast rate with chest pain, breathlessness or dizziness needs emergency care.
Some watches can flag a possible irregular rhythm, but a diagnosis needs an EKG reviewed by a clinician.
Keep Reading
More from Eastex ER on deciding where to go and what to expect. Browse every guide in our health resources library.
Eastex Emergency Room is open 24/7 at 5550 Eastex Fwy, Suite C, Beaumont, TX 77708. Walk in or call 409-800-1100. For a life-threatening emergency, call 911.
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This page is general education and does not replace an exam by a clinician. If you think you are having a life-threatening emergency, call 911.