What Is Syncope? Syncope (“SIN-ko-pea”) is the broad medical term for fainting or passing out. This happens when you have a sudden, temporary drop in the amount of blood that flows to your brain.

Understanding the Context

Passing out and briefly losing consciousness—for a few seconds to a few minutes—can be scary, but it's not necessarily a cause for alarm. Syncope, the medical term for passing out, is usually related to a drop in blood flow to the brain. Many conditions can cause this, and most aren't serious. When you faint, you become unconscious for a few seconds.

Key Insights

It is also called passing out or blacking out. The medical term for this is syncope. You may feel sick and sweaty first or pass out with no warning signs at all. When you pass out, you fall to the ground. Syncope is the medical term for fainting or passing out.

Final Thoughts

It refers to a relatively sudden loss of consciousness, followed by a spontaneous rapid and complete recovery. Some people use the terms blackout and fainting interchangeably, but they are different things. A blackout is a loss of memory. Fainting, also called passing out, is a loss of consciousness. What is syncope? Syncope (SINK-a-pee) is another word for fainting or passing out.

Someone is considered to have syncope if they become unconscious and go limp, then soon recover. For most people, syncope occurs once in a great while, if ever, and is not a sign of serious illness. Syncope (syncope ⓘ), commonly known as fainting or passing out, is a loss of consciousness and muscle strength characterized by a fast onset, short duration, and spontaneous recovery. [1] Prevention What is syncope?