What is POTS?

POTS stands for Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. To understand POTS, we need to first understand the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system controls and regulates many of the things we don’t think about such as heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, sweating, digestion, kidney function, and more. Dysautonomia or autonomic dysfunction occurs when this system doesn’t work as it should. POTS is a form of dysautonomia. The specific criteria for POTS is a heart rate increase of 30BPM or more upon standing.

Who does it affect?

There’s an estimated 1-3 million Americans living with POTS. It largely affects young women ages 14-55, but can also affect men as well as children and the elderly.

What causes it?

POTS is often triggered by an infection, a virus, a physical trauma like concussion or surgery, or an underlying condition. To see a list of some of the underlying causes, visit Dysautonomiainternational.org.