A fainting episode may be completely harmless but it can also be a symptom of a serious underlying disorder-including a slow heart rate. How do you know the difference?

A sudden drop in your blood pressure can cause you to faint. Sometimes your heart rate and blood vessels can't react fast enough when your body's need for oxygen changes. Physician Carlos Cuello explains, "Passing out is an enormous event, particularly in the elderly."

If you're fainting from a cardiac cause such as an abnormal heart rhythm, there are treatment options that you should discuss with your doctor. It's important that this symptom not be ignored. As Willie Hickey found out "It was progressively getting worse."

Dr. Cuello says, "A patient may not suspect that it's a slow heartbeat. Such as extreme tiredness, extreme fatigue, dizzy spells."

Dr. Cuello also says that if you're fainting frequently, your putting yourself at risk for other problems. "Usually they present with bone fractures, hip fractures. And there is nothing you can do if it is a slow heartbeat except to have a pacemaker. The problem is that they break one hip, you replace it and then they go home without the pacemaker and they come back with the other hip broken."

Willie says, "I'm enjoying life a lot more, even though I'm getting old."

In most cases, an attack of fainting is not serious. As soon as the underlying pain or stress passes, the danger of repeated episodes is also eliminated.

Even if it's not an emergency situation, your physician should evaluate you after your first fainting episode, if you're fainting frequently or if you have new symptoms associated with fainting. Call for an appointment to be seen as soon as possible.