When Dr. Monica Lo joined Arkansas Heart Hospital, she had never been to the state before. After finishing her electrophysiology fellowship at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, she and her husband, Dr. Daniel Sherbet, saw something special at Arkansas Heart Hospital. They began practicing at the hospital in 2013.

Dr. Lo, featured recently in Arkansas Medical News, specializes in electrophysiology, a field that has changed dramatically in recent years. Advances in technology and medicine have created a cure for arrhythmia, where patients once had to take lifelong medication. A higher success rate and improved technology has led to an uptick in procedures like catheter ablations, and Dr. Lo now sees a wide range of patients for atrial fibrillation, which is commonly an irregular heart rate.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, studies have found that as many as 75% of survivors have heart damage, often experiencing a high heart rate. Dr. Lo says many COVID survivors have dysautonomia with a heightened adrenaline tone.

“Their heart rate can increase quickly with any activity,” Dr. Lo said. “This takes time to resolve and really needs cardiac conditioning.” She recommends that primary care providers obtain an EKG from any COVID-19 survivors who are having issues, and that they make referrals to a specialist if it comes back abnormal.

To learn more about Dr. Lo’s work, high heart rate and COVID-19’s impact on the heart, read the January edition of Arkansas Medical News.

You can lower your risk for heart damage, hospitalization and even death with the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine offered now at AHH. Schedule an appointment to get your vaccine today.