Certified Rehabilitation Counselor Practice

Which term is used to describe a slow heart rate?

1. Tachycardia

2. Arrhythmia

3. Bradycardia

4. Hypertension

The correct answer is: Bradycardia

The term that specifically describes a slow heart rate is bradycardia. Bradycardia refers to a condition where the heart beats fewer than 60 times per minute, which is slower than the normal resting heart rate. This can occur for various physiological reasons and might be a sign of an underlying health issue, but in many athletes and individuals with high cardiovascular fitness, a low resting heart rate can be completely normal. Tachycardia, on the other hand, is used to denote a fast heart rate, which is the opposite of bradycardia. Arrhythmia refers to an irregular or abnormal heartbeat, which can encompass both slow and fast heart rates or various irregularities in the rhythm but does not specifically mean a slow heart rate. Hypertension pertains to high blood pressure, which is unrelated to heart rate but is rather a measurement of the pressure in the arteries. Each of these terms describes different cardiovascular conditions, clearly differentiating bradycardia as the correct answer in the context of a slow heart rate.