During atrial flutter, how many times can the atrial beats fire per minute?

In atrial flutter, the typical rate of atrial beats can indeed range from 250 to 450 beats per minute. This arrhythmia is characterized by rapid reentrant circuits within the atria, leading to a distinct sawtooth pattern of electrical activity observed on the EKG known as "F-waves." This high rate of atrial depolarization is a key feature of atrial flutter, resulting from the rapid conduction of electrical impulses through the atrial tissue.

The high-frequency impulses can lead to a variety of ventricular response rates depending on how many of those impulses are conducted through the atrioventricular (AV) node to the ventricles. However, the hallmark characteristic of atrial flutter remains the elevated rate of atrial firing, which is why the range of 250 to 450 beats per minute is the most accurate description of atrial activity during this arrhythmia.