What Atrial Trigeminy Looks Like on Your Watch ECG

Atrial Trigeminy ECG
Qaly Heart
Qaly is built by Stanford engineers and cardiologists, including Dr. Marco Perez, a Stanford Associate Professor of Medicine, Stanford Cardiac Electrophysiologist, and Co-PI of the Apple Heart Study.

Key Takeaways

  • The tell-tale sign of Atrial Trigeminy is a Premature Atrial Contraction (PAC) on every third beat of your heart rhythm.
  • The occasional Atrial Trigeminy usually isn't a cause for concern, but it can lead to more serious heart conditions like Atrial Fibrillation (Afib).
  • If you show signs of Atrial Trigeminy, contact your healthcare provider immediately to rule out the presence of harmful underlying conditions.

Got other questions on Atrial Trigeminy? See the Qaly guides on Atrial Trigeminy:

Introduction

Hello, heart hero. In your quest to identify that irregular heart rhythm you just felt, you may have come across the terms Ventricular Trigeminy or Atrial Trigeminy. With your trusty watch ECG now in hand, you may be wondering, "What does Atrial Trigeminy look like on my watch ECG?" In this guide, we'll help you see Atrial Trigeminy on your watch ECG. Let's dive in.

What's Atrial Trigeminy?

Before trying to identify Atrial Trigeminy on your ECG, it's helpful to remind yourself what Atrial Trigeminy actually is. (If you're confident in your Atrial Trigeminy knowledge, though, skip on ahead to the next section for some visual examples of an Atrial Trigeminy ECG).

To start, remember how your heart beats? It produces an electrical signal, which squeezes and unsqueezes your heart, which in turn pumps your blood to your lungs for oxygen and then out to the rest of your body.

Normally, your heart produces that electrical signal from your "sinus node" to generate a normal heartbeat. Sometimes, however, that electrical signal starts from somewhere else in your heart, where it isn't supposed to. This abnormal heartbeat is called an "ectopic" heartbeat. When that ectopic heartbeat starts in your heart's upper chambers, or atria, it's called a Premature Atrial Contraction (PAC). "Trigeminy" is a type of abnormal heart rhythm where an ectopic heartbeat happens every third heartbeat in the rhythm. Atrial Trigeminy, then, is when every third beat of your heart rhythm is a PAC.

So What Does Atrial Trigeminy Look Like on My Watch ECG?

To identify Atrial Trigeminy on your ECG, look for these tell-tale signs:

  • Two normal heartbeats followed by a PAC, for three or more consecutive cycles. The beat pattern is: normal-normal-PAC, normal-normal-PAC, and so on.
  • An abnormal P wave, which can vary in size and shape.
  • A normal QRS interval, between 0.08 and 0.12 seconds long.

For visual examples, take a look at Atrial Trigeminy seen on Qaly members' watch ECGs.

Here's Atrial Trigeminy caught on a Qaly member's Apple Watch ECG. Notice the beat pattern: normal beat, normal beat, PAC.
Here's Atrial Trigeminy caught on a Qaly member's Apple Watch ECG. Notice the beat pattern: normal beat, normal beat, PAC.

Here's Atrial Trigeminy caught on a Qaly member's KardiaMobile Unclassified ECG. Notice the beat pattern: normal beat, normal beat, PAC.
Here's Atrial Trigeminy caught on a Qaly member's KardiaMobile Unclassified ECG. Notice the beat pattern: normal beat, normal beat, PAC.

Get your ECG checked by certified experts within minutes on the Qaly app.

Try Qaly for Free
App Store - Download Qaly | ECG Reader
Download Qaly
Google Play - Download Qaly | ECG Reader
Download Qaly
Start today, cancel any time
QALY app - ecg reviews, ecg reader, ecg interpretations, review your ecg
Here's Atrial Trigeminy caught on a Qaly member's Apple Watch ECG. Notice that Sinus Rhythm starts this ECG, then Atrial Bigeminy steps in with a PAC on every third beat.
Here's Atrial Trigeminy caught on a Qaly member's Apple Watch ECG. Notice that Sinus Rhythm starts this ECG, then Atrial Bigeminy steps in with a PAC on every third beat.

Is Atrial Trigeminy a Cause for Concern?

Atrial Trigeminy isn't necessarily dangerous. Though, if you have heart disease or other known heart conditions, Atrial Trigeminy can lead to more dangerous rhythms like Afib, or even sudden cardiac arrest.

As always, if you show signs of Atrial Trigeminy, contact your healthcare provider immediately to rule out the presence of harmful underlying conditions.

Conclusion

Well, that just about wraps up our guide on what Atrial Trigeminy looks like on your watch ECG. We hope this could be of some help to you.

If you still need help interpreting your ECGs, don't worry, we understand how scary and confusing it can be to experience irregular heartbeats. That's why we created the Qaly app for you and for the hundreds of millions of people around the world who live with heart palpitations and abnormal heart rhythms. On the Qaly app, human experts will interpret your ECGs within minutes for clarity and peace of mind.

To get started with the Qaly app, grab the Qaly app from the App Store or Play Store today. If you have any more questions, or if you need our help in any other way, don't hesitate to reach out to us at support@qaly.co.

As always from the team at Qaly, stay heart healthy ❤️

Wondering if it's Atrial Trigeminy? On the Qaly app, human experts will interpret your ECGs for Atrial Trigeminy within minutes. Get started today.

Try free, cancel any time
Download Qaly
App Store - Download Qaly | ECG Reader
Download Qaly
Google Play - Download Qaly | ECG Reader
Download Qaly
Start today, cancel any time
QALY app - ecg reviews, ecg reader, ecg interpretations, review your ecg

Get unlimited ECG reviews today, cancel anytime -->

Get unlimited ECG reviews today, cancel anytime -->

Wondering if it's Atrial Trigeminy? On the Qaly app, human experts will interpret your ECGs for Atrial Trigeminy within minutes. Get started today.

Download Qaly