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Causes
By Mayo Clinic staffVasovagal syncope occurs when the part of your nervous system that regulates heart rate and blood pressure malfunctions in response to a trigger, such as the sight of blood. Your heart rate slows, and the blood vessels in your legs widen. This allows blood to pool in your legs, which lowers your blood pressure. This drop in blood pressure and slowed heart rate quickly diminish blood flow to your brain, and you faint.
Although vasovagal syncope can occur at any age, it's being recognized as an increasingly important cause of fainting in the elderly.
Common triggers for vasovagal syncope include:
- Standing for long periods of time
- Heat exposure
- The sight of blood
- Having blood drawn
- Fear of bodily injury
- Straining, such as to have a bowel movement
- Olshansky B. Neurocardiogenic (vasovagal) syncope. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 28, 2010.
- Strickberger SA, et al. AHA/ACCF Scientific statement on the evaluation of syncope. Circulation. 2006;113:316.
- Tan MP, et al. Vasovagal syncope in the older patient. Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 2008;51:599.
- Parry SW, et al. The management of vasovagal syncope. Quarterly Journal of Medicine. 1999;92:697.
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