If a disordered heartbeat is detected and, particularly if the person has other symptoms, then a doctor might recommend a heart pacer, a spectacular solution for this potentially life-threatening problem. Medications can also control erratic heartbeat. The choice depends on what the Holter monitor reveals. A second cause for drop attacks is what is known as a TIA, which stands for transient ischemic attack. When tiny platelet clots flip off of the lining of an artery or valve leading to the brain and go upstream into the head, they can cause a small, temporary lack of circulation to that part of the brain.
Unconsciousness is sometimes the result.
A TIA might also be called a strokelet, or little stroke. If a TIA is the cause of the drop attack, treatment involves either thinning of the blood with aspirin or Coumadin to prevent clot formation, or cleaning out debris in the blood vessels using a device like a Roto-Rooter. The third common cause of a drop attack is a seizure. We tend to think of seizures as the epileptic spells young people sometimes have. But they can occur later in life, too, usually as the result of an otherwise undetected stroke.