Brachycardia and bradycardia are technical terms commonly used in the medical sector. While you might be unfamiliar with them, you can tell they are related from their spellings. We will look at brachycardia vs bradycardia at an in-depth level to let you know the correct word among the two and expound more on the meanings.
Bradycardia means “abnormally slow heart action.” It is a medical condition characterized by a slow heartbeat, generally under 60 beats per minute for an adult, causing fatigue, dizziness, sweating, and fainting. On the other hand, brachycardia is a synonym for the word bradycardia.
Words like bradycardia and brachycardia are hard for regular people to understand because they are professional terms. However, these words are simpler than you expect. Read on to learn more about these words’ meanings and how you can use them in sentences.
Definitions Of Brachycardia And Bradycardia
Words like brachycardia and bradycardia may seem intimidating for the first time. It is because their spelling seems complicated. Even pronouncing these words is not easy for first-timers. However, looking at their definitions, you will be shocked by how simple they are. So, let us kick off this article by explaining the meanings of brachycardia and bradycardia.
Definitions Of Brachycardia
Brachycardia is a medical condition where a person has a lower-than-normal heart rate. According to studies, an average adult’s heart rate is usually 60 plus beats per minute. So, a person with brachycardia has a resting heart rate lower than 50 or 60 BPM.
An example sentence is, “Brachycardia is a dangerous medical condition that requires immediate medical attention.”
Another source defines brachycardia as a medical condition where a person has a lower-than-average heartbeat, characterized by symptoms like weakness, sweating, dizziness, and fainting. An example sentence is, “Brachycardia is one of the least researched medical conditions despite its seriousness.” In simpler words, brachycardia is a condition of having a slow heartbeat.
Definitions Of Bradycardia
Bradycardia is a synonym for brachycardia. Therefore, this word has the same definition as “brachycardia.” For example, most medical dictionaries define bradycardia as “a condition of having an abnormally slow heartbeat (below 60 beats per minute).
An example sentence is, “Bradycardia can turn into a life-threatening condition if you do not treat it immediately.”
How To Properly Use Brachycardia And Bradycardia In A Sentence
The section above explains the simple definition of the words brachycardia and bradycardia. Something else that is incredible about these words is that they do not have multiple meanings. So, while different sources use varying wordings to explain their definition, the context remains the same.
Also, the meaning section above concludes that brachycardia and bradycardia are synonyms. Therefore, they refer to the same thing, and you can use them interchangeably. Keeping the information above in mind, let’s see how you can use brachycardia and bradycardia in your contexts.
How To Use The Word Brachycardia
Use this word as a noun in a sentence when referring to a medical condition where a person has an abnormally low heart rate of under 60 BPM.
Since this is a technical word, it is mainly applied in hospitals or medical institutions. However, if you understand its meaning, you can use it in random conversations, provided the context is right.
In fact, you can use this word figuratively, like in the following sentence, “I got instant brachycardia when I saw my wife walking down the aisle towards me.” The sentence suggests that the speaker’s heartbeat slowed when he saw his bride walking down the aisle.
Note: Brachycardia is an uncountable noun. So, you can use its normal form in singular and plural contexts. For example, “The results for all the brachycardia tests were inconclusive. And since brachycardia is an uncountable noun, you should note the following:
- It can take a plural or singular verb
- You cannot use the articles “a” or “an” before it.
For example, “A brachycardia is a dangerous medical condition.” (INCORRECT). Instead, this sentence should read, “Brachycardia is a dangerous medical condition. (CORRECT)
How To Use The Word Bradycardia
This word is a synonym for brachycardia. It would be best to use it in sentences like you use brachycardia. So, the tips above also apply in this case.
Note: Bradycardia is an uncountable noun. That means it does not have a plural form. So, even if you are referring to it in a plural context, the plural form remains “bradycardia.” For example, “The doctor will review the five bradycardia patients in the morning.”
Brachycardia Vs Bradycardia: What Is More About These Words?
The forming words for the term ‘bradycardia” are “brady” + “cardia.” “Brady” is a medical word-forming element meaning “slow, delayed, or tardy.” The word comes from the Greek term “bradys,” meaning “slow.”
On the other hand, “cardia” is a Latinized form of the Greek term “kardia.” Meaning “heart.” So, the word bradycardia comes from the Greek word “bradykinesia,” meaning “slow movement.” “Kinesis” is the Greek word for “movement or motion.”
In contrast, the word “brachycardia” comes from combining the word-forming elements “brachy-“ and “cardia.” In ethnology, “brachy” means “short-headed or slow.” The meaning of “cardia” remains constant in both contexts.
Therefore, the difference between these words is their first word-forming element. However, “brady” and ‘brachy” have similar or closely-related meanings. This explains why these words are synonyms, and you can use them synonymously.
Something else you need to take note about is the pronunciations. The proper pronunciation of “bradycardia” is “/brad-i-kahr-dee-uh/.” On the other hand, the correct pronunciation of “brachycardia” is “/bruh-chee-kahr-dee-uh/.” As you can see, the only difference in pronunciation is in the first two syllables. It is also worth citing that both words have five syllables.
List Of Examples Of Brachycardia And Bradycardia In Sentences
Many people avoid using words like bradycardia and brachycardia in everyday contexts because they assume they are too complex. That should no longer be the case because you have seen how simple these words are and how you can use them in sentences.
If the information above is insufficient, a section with examples of sentences featuring these words will enhance your understanding of these words. Keenly have a look at the following simple sentence examples with the words bradycardia and brachycardia.
Example sentences of the word brachycardia
- Brachycardia is a less-known medical condition that primarily affects many individuals with weak hearts.
- The athlete dropped out of the race when the doctor diagnosed him with critical brachycardia.
- The doctors cannot explain the cause of brachycardia in children.
- The researchers only used adult subjects for their study on brachycardia.
- The professor explained brachycardia as a condition where someone has a lower-than-normal resting heartbeat.
Example sentences of the word bradycardia
- After running dozens of tests, the doctors concluded that Jane suffered from severe bradycardia.
- The nurse suspects that the student that fainted twice this morning suffers from bradycardia.
- Fainting and dizziness are the most common symptoms of bradycardia.
- The doctors have not yet found a definite answer for the cause of bradycardia in newborns.
- The parents were so scared when the doctor diagnosed their son with bradycardia.
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Conclusion
This article concludes that brachycardia and bradycardia are synonyms with the same meaning. Note that not all synonyms usually have the same definitions. In some cases, synonyms only have related but not exactly the same meaning. So, you ought to be keen when defining words classified as synonyms. Simply put, brachycardia and bradycardia are unique cases.
You can use them interchangeably in the same context. Several other words in the English language are similar to brachycardia and bradycardia. So, feel free to continue browsing our site to learn more.
Shawn Manaher is the founder and CEO of The Content Authority. He’s one part content manager, one part writing ninja organizer, and two parts leader of top content creators. You don’t even want to know what he calls pancakes.