Ask the doctor: Tracking down the possible causes of fainting
Certain problems that prevent the heart from pumping normally can also cause people to faint. The most common is an arrhythmia, an irregular heartbeat. Another is an abnormally slow heartbeat, called bradycardia. To diagnose these problems, the doctor may ask your mother to wear a portable heart rate monitor for a day or two, or possibly longer. In some cases, people with infrequent fainting spells have a miniature sensor implanted under the skin to detect and record abnormal heart rhythms.
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