Heart rate 44 on an adult - what does it mean?

Where 44 bpm sits on the adult scale

What a resting pulse of 44 means

Endurance training makes the heart muscle stronger, so it moves more blood per beat and needs fewer beats at rest. Runners, cyclists and swimmers commonly rest between 40 and 60 bpm. During sleep, almost everyone's heart rate drops 10–20 bpm below the daytime resting value.

If you are not particularly fit, possible causes include medications (beta blockers and other heart-rate-lowering drugs), an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), sleep apnea and conduction problems of the heart. These are easy to check with an ECG and a blood test, or a sleep study for sleep apnea.

Ranges apply to adults and children aged 10 and older, measured at rest (American Heart Association). By the numbers: at 44 bpm the heart beats about every 1.36 seconds — roughly 63,360 beats a day.

Dropped beats: second-degree heart block at 44

In second-degree heart block, some of the signals from the upper chambers do not make it through to the lower chambers. The heart effectively skips a beat now and then, or in a regular pattern. Your pulse then counts only the beats that got through.

The number 44 shows how this works. If the upper chambers fire at a normal 88 per minute and every second signal is blocked, a pattern called 2:1 block, the pulse at the wrist reads 44. The heart’s pacemaker is fine; the relay is not passing everything on.

Mobitz I and Mobitz II in plain words

Mobitz type I, also called Wenckebach, works like a tired messenger. Each signal takes a little longer to get through than the last, until one fails completely. Then the cycle starts over. The block usually sits in the AV node itself. It is often harmless, especially in young, fit people and during sleep, when the vagus nerve is very active. It may need no treatment if there are no symptoms.

Mobitz type II gives no warning. The delay stays the same from beat to beat, and then a signal is suddenly dropped. The fault usually lies lower in the conduction system. This type is more likely to progress to complete heart block, so doctors usually recommend a pacemaker even when the person feels well.

A 2:1 pattern can be either type, and sometimes extra tests are needed to tell which.

What you might notice and what to do

Some people feel nothing. Others notice a skipped or missing beat, a pulse that feels irregular, light-headedness, tiredness or breathlessness with effort. A wrist pulse that has a regular rhythm with occasional gaps is a useful thing to describe to a doctor.

Only an ECG can show second-degree block, and because it can come and go, a recorder worn for a day or more is often used. Doctors also check for reversible causes, such as rate-lowering drugs, Lyme disease, high potassium or a recent heart attack.

If your resting pulse is around 44 and you are not a well-trained athlete, book a doctor’s visit soon. Go the same day if you feel faint or breathless, and call 911 for fainting or chest pain. More on how the heart’s signal travels is on the human heart rate page.

For a reliable resting value, sit quietly for five minutes first and average a few mornings: Resting Heart Rate: What It Says About Your Health. You can also measure by tapping along on the start page.

Nearby values

• 39 bpm
• 40 bpm
• 41 bpm
• 42 bpm
• 43 bpm
• 45 bpm
• 46 bpm
• 47 bpm
• 48 bpm
• 49 bpm

Measured on a child instead? See heart rate 44 in a child.

Sources: American Heart Association: All About Heart Rate · MedlinePlus: Pulse · ACSM position stand on exercise intensity (2011)

This page explains a single reading in general terms. It is not a diagnosis. Heart rate alone cannot tell whether the rhythm is regular or whether the heart is healthy — if you are worried, talk to a doctor.