PVCs

[kcossich]

Thanks to a doctor's answer to a previous post about my chest pain, my family dr. has diagnosed me with costochondritis and I am finally starting to feel better; however, in the past few weeks, I have begun to have some PVCs. Can stress cause PVCs to happen?  My father died unexpectedly on Dec. 22 and both my brother and I have had episodes of PVCs (I am 31 and he is 29).  I also had a baby 5 weeks before my father died, so I have been under some addition stress! We have never had PVCs before.  The only reason I know that I'm having them is because my brother is a nurse and told me what they feel like.  Both of us have had treadmill stress tests and I have had a Thallium stress test, which all came back normal.  How do you cope with PVCs?  Is there any deep breathing technique that can help with them? Is just de-stressing enough to make them go away?  I usually have 1 every other day, but yesterday, I had 4, and I got a little worried.  Thank you!

[CCF-M.D.-DLB]

Yes stress can definitely cause PVCs. Chronic stress can do it, as can acute episodes of stress. When the stress is acute, the PVCs usually go away with time. getting enough sleep can avoiding caffeine can help as well.

[A_Orta]

Consider yourself lucky. I have between one and two thousand PVC's a day ! Many sufferers of PVC's have this many and more. Stress DEFINETLY worsens PVC's as does lack of sleep. If there is nothing wrong with your heart don't worry about them.

[JR]

i really wish that people would stop telling everyone that "PVC's are benign and just to not worry about them"....when they can be a marker for all sorts of cardiac problems....my advice (if its worth anything)...if you feel something is wrong, go get a full workup (demand it) and go from there...never ignore your body when apparently it is trying to tell you something.

[rick1234]

from someone that suffers with PVC's i thought i'd put my 2 cents in.  first i agree that if one experiences these, they should get checked out. IF you are given a clean bill of heath, then the only thing you need to do is learn how to lessen these or live with them.  In my opinion, anything from stress to food can cause these.  First, try eliminating all caffeine.  not just coffee.  no chocolate etc.  also stay clear of and diet type pills even if so called natural.  try to do some areobic type exercise at least 3 days a week.  walking is good.  eat smaller meals.  and try some form of stress reduction such as meditation.  i am still experimenting myself and its not alway easy.  i recently had a holter monitor and had 1000 in a 20 hr period.  they are VERY irksome. only someone that goes thru these knows what its like. thats why it is prob easy for some docs to say...don't worry about them.

rick

[heartfull]

OK, I know pvc's are for the most part benign, but hankstar you are wrong about the "only" concern is when you have coronary heart disease. I have suffered with them for close to 10 years now and I DO have a heart condition but NO CAD.
  I was 26 and preganant before i found out that I had been born with a hole in my heart. It didnt bother me till then and hasent quit bothering me since. Each year of my life brings on new challanges. I have developed cardiomyopathy w/ episodes of v-tach and alot of pvc's. Thousands a day in every shape and form that they come.
  It is always wise to insist on a cardiac workup and to keep a follow up on them at least every couple years. I was sent to therapy to learn to deal with the "panic attacks" caused by my reaction to pvc's while all along i was developing a serious heart condition. My panic attacks were finally caught on a recording and as it turns out, it is v-tach. This will not happen to everyone or may never happen this way again. Dont freak out over them but dont totally ignore them. If you are having them, you will learn to live with it. If they worsen, get another workup.The best advice is to insist that you wear a monitor for however long it takes to record the episode that bothers you most. This is your life so dont let anyone including doctors tell you how you "should" feel or shouldnt. You will feel how your body reacts to them. My nervous system gets totally out of wack over them sometimes and i have to take a med that calms it. When your heart is acting up, your brain picks up on it and sometimes sends adrinalin(sp?) to help it out, this in turn can send you right into a panic attack, or the fight and flight syndrome. Beta blockers are a great treament for it as the first treament if one is needed.
  Good luck and God bless (p.s.  Happy Spring to all  :-)

[heartfull]

Hi there hankstar and thanks for responding. Yes, I too believe that my dialated CM is caused by the septal defect. They say it isnt, but what do they know.<lol> My heart has been working it's hardest all it's little life. For some misterious reason they will not concider surgery on atrial septal defects after the age of 25, as a rule. This is at least what I have read and my dr. gave no explanation as to why he and 3 others like him have said it cant be fixed. After reading the CC heart book, they say it too. In babies it is a very sucessful surgery, as you get older, it becomes too risky, i beieve.
  I would have never found all this out if i hadnt kept pushing my docs about the pvc's. Thankfully, my internest at the time felt i should stay on B-blockers and I believe it saved my life.
  Another thing i read in the heart book is that pulmonary hypertension can be a problem up coming to 40 years. I looked into it because of some problems i have been having and i noticed that i had a higher than normal at rest pressure with my last echo. I plan to push that issue also. What i find interesting is that my doc has me on the oral treatment for it????? Well i will get to the bottom of it or find some one else who cares more. I do have a soft heart for my current dr due to the fact that he was the only cardio out of 5 in a 2 year period who didnt see me as a hysterical woman. I am very level headed and he treats me with respect. That does count for something.
  Thanks again, we can talk more about this if you want to post. If there is anything i can offer to help you with, please dont hesitate to ask. Believe me, i'v been there and there is alot to it and alot they dont tell you about.
  Good luck and i hope you feel well soon too. God Bless   :-)

[heartfull]

by the way....because i do have mild hypertension (recent development) and from my symptoms during and after v-tach episodes, mine are believed to be unstable. They can last anywhere from a 1/4 min. to a minute or so, comming off and on for hours. i am sick of them. i cant breathe, i become disoriented and after a big one i have shortness of breath and chest pain, sometimes for days. And fatigue that would put a horse to sleep. dont get me wrong, i am not afraid of dying tho i would love to stay around and continue working with the little children that i teach. my biggest problem is leaving my daughters too soon. i love them dearly. for that reason, i would rather have an ICD than to risk sudden death. I am at a much higher risk of SCD and i dont like it. The only reason i am on this machine this late is that a run of v-tach woke me up!! it was short and not too bothersome, just enough to wake me.
Have a good one tomorrow.

[heartfull]

hey,
  Thanks for the kindness of your post. I am truely sorry for the unstable heart beats and hope that they will leave you alone for a while. I started out like that too, just came and went whenever they felt like it. I know how it can drive you nuts.
  As for me, i know that God has become very protective of me  :) I experience little miricals now so often i cant even think He is ready for me to leave this earth just yet. I also believe that He provides us with the info that is available to us so that we can take some control over our own health. Thats why I highly reccomend that everyone obtain and read copies of their tests. Learn about all the terms used and understand them. That is the only way you will know if your dr is being upfront about all that is going on. I do realize that not everyone can handle knowing some of the things they find out and maybe it is best they dont know. For me, knowlege is power and power is understanding. Once i understand what is going on, i am less fearful. When i have an episode of VT, i know that i will likely come out of it sooner or later and am less scared. I'm not saying i'm not scared at all, just less. I know that if V-fib hits, it will be sudden and i likely will not even know it hit.
  I would like to ask you, if you know this. Is "wide range VT the same as like with long QRS? I cant find it anywhere and they seem to be one in the same, just different term? If you find anythig on it, it will help me with my plans for this.
  I hope you are feeling better soon. Dont feel like you are mental over the panic attacks. You must know that it is mostly your body doing this to you. Dont try to fight them off, it causes more stress. Let them happen to you, if that makes sence to you. When i have them, i give into them now. I lay down and meditate. I usually pray and find myself with my heavenly Father, a safe place for me. Find your place to go in your mind and try to seperate......mind over matter. I also take xanax when i have 'em. They are a big help.
  Good luck Hankstar and to everyone who reads this who is suffering with a cranky heart.
  God Bless

[dodgybeats]

I just want to say that I take my hat off to you out there who have thousands of PVCs/day - I have had about 50 today and it has been absolute sheer hell.  How do you cope with so many??

[Barbara]

I too am bothered with heart skips.  I recently went to the emergency room with them.  They hooked me up to the monitor and did ekg's.  guess what?  They asked me if I care to talk to someone.  When I said yes, they sent me to the crisis center to speak to a counselor.  They told me it was nerves and there was nothing wrong with my heart.  How's that?  Two weeks ago, the doctor sent me for a thalium stress test.  I also got a clean bill of health from that.  I went for massages, counseling, and even church,  with nothing helping.  Now there coming more frequently, like an episode every hour.  I don't know how much more I can take.  Anyone care to email me  ***@****.  Thanks for listening.

[Suzy]

Hi all PVC suffers!  Like most of you writing in this section,  I am a PVC sufferer too, getting approximately 6 PVC's a minute.  Very annoying, often with chest pain, and like everyone (it seems) been told not to worry about it.  Of course I believe my doctors that they are benign and probably won't kill me but they are worrying and it's difficult to not worry when your chest is flip flopping all day and your heart feels like someone is stabbing it with a pin! Just curious about the chest pain - is this normal with PVC's.  Would appreciate any feedback. Good luck to you all and hope we can all somehow figure out how to minimise these rotten things!

[JR]

suzy,
have chest pain all the time, but its probably from the beta blocker that im taking form my thumps and bangs. are you taking anything for it? also ive found that taking care of my digestive system (GERD)seems to help immensely.

[kokes]

i'm new here and welcome anyones comments or thoughts.  I have recently started having these interruptions in my heartbeat and i'm guessing it is what everyone is referring to as PVC's.  They happen almost only when I am running.  I've run 6 marathons before and never had a problem, now almost on every run and within the first few minutes...thump!

My echocardiogram today looked normal to the tech.  Do others get pvc's while exercising?  Did those who have many pvc's now start by only having a few?  Does it get progressively worse?

[ZEET]

I have been dealing with different arrythmias since 1993. It started one day with a fast rate, and would slow down after a couple of hours. Everyday after my heart would do the same thing. Then in february 1998, this one day my heart would not slow down, and I started to feel all this fluttering and those hard beats, that come one at a time. So I ended up going to the E.R. and then to a cardiologist for the first time since all this started. I have had the blood work, cardiograms, and echo and told all is o.k. I still had symptons and then I was put on Toprol in september 1999. The one arrythmia I get that scares me more than the fluttering or racing heart, is I can be fine, then I will feel a flutter and my heart beats very slow or out of rythm. Sometimes at this point I start to feel slightly woozy, and I cough or do something with a quick motion to correct the rythm. Then it goes from a slow beat to a fast beat and then back to normal. Sometimes at this point at the end of the event I get a hot feeling, like a hot flash. These events I guess are better since the Toprol than before, but these events can come much more about and much more severe I noticed if I am behind in my dosages, and it is around my menses. When it is close to that time of the month, also if I am behind in taking the Toprol I pay for it. DOES ANYONE, know what the symptons I describe are? DOES ANYONE, have terrible symptons around their time of the month?

Thanks,
Valerie.

[ZEET]

I forgot to add that I currently take 50mg. Toprol twice daily. I was just told by my cardio, that to take three Toprol daily only during that time of the month.

Thanks,
Val.

[Suzy]

I don't have chest pain all the time but when it does strike it usually lasts a day or two.  Sometimes the pain is so bad that it wakes me at night.  Feels quite sharp and also like something is being pulled. For a period of time with the chest pain I also got pain down my left arm and as such I did go to the doctor to 'whinge' again and she suggested it could be a nerve. The arm pain has gone but the chest continues to be a pain.

I have not been given any medication for my PVC's. I don't take caffeine in any form, not a smoker and don't even drink. (a bit boring I know)

I had a history of gastric problems but on that side of things it has been fine for quite a few years now.  

Heard that PVC's could be minimised by taking Potassium and Magnesium supplements.  Do you think this is a viabe option?  

I find it amazing as soon as someone writes something about PVC's a whole bunch of people come out of the woodworks - it's great in the way it's comforting but also a bit sad that so many of us have this rotten things.  

Thank you so much for writing.  I hope your PVC's are under control and don't hassle you too much.  Just knowing someone listens is a great help.

Kindest regards

Suzy

[dodgybeats]

Personally, my thumps and flutters are MUCH worse just before, during and after my menses....in fact I can almost predict when I am due on account of the increase in PVC/PACs.  I usually have around 2-10 per day (that I can feel anyway) but before menses this increases to 50-100 approx.  I have told my cardio this but he just waves it off.  There are numerous posts on this website however, which show that other women have noticed this as well.  As if PMS isn't enough!

[ZEET]

I wanted to add that yesterday I took three of the Toprol 50mg. and today when I got up, as soon as I stood up and started to walk around my heart started to race. Which is not new for me, but I thought it would be alot better since taking the three Toprol yesterday. I am over due for my menses, and these symptons always come  about much more right before(especialyy if Im late) during and after that time. Some months when it gets close to that time, I feel as if I not taking any meds. at all, because of the symptons I feel.

[Jodie]

Sounds like some of this is anxiety or anxiety might be a contributing factor.  I have weeks where my heart beats fine.  Then I can wake up and it is beating fast for no reason.  If I sit down, it slows down, if I stand up it shoots up to around 110.  I usually take a 1/2 of a Tenormin and it works perfectly.  Have you ever tried taking that?  It really works wonders.  I also get a similar incident to you where I can be feeling fine,then I feel wierd flutters and my heart pauses.  It doesn't slow down, the beat just goes away for 3-4 seconds.  I feel a little woozy then BOOM, it starts beating really fast and out of rythym for 90 seconds or so and goes back to its normal rythym.  This one scares me because the doctor has never caught it.  It happens to infrequently.  (once a year or so).  I would ask your doctor about Tenormin.  Because of the low dose I am on, I can take it only when I feel the fast heart beat.  I have however started taking 1/2 of a 25mg pill every night.  That way when I wake up and get out of bed, it never starts racing.  I also notice more pacs, and pvc's around my period.  No doubt about that.  I think it is the water retention building up against the vagus nerve.  If I take deep breaths it starts skipping.  Yucch, I hate all of this.  It would just be so nice  to feel NORMAL.  E-mail me if you like..***@****.

[ZEET]

Thanks, for your comment. It does help to know that other people know how you feel, and may have the same symptons. Not that I wish this misery on anyone, but when people know exactly what your trying to describe, it really does help. Yesterday was the first day that I took the Toprol three times a day. They said try to space it every eight hours. So I thought today when I got up I would not have the heart racing and whatever else. But as soon as I got up, BOOM there it goes racing. Then Ill have something to eat, and I start to feel good, the racing goes away, then sometimes after a while, after I have a meal BOOM again it starts up again. Then after some time it slows back down. Is it the stomach that is the culprit? The digestive area, that causes the heart things? I dont know. But when it is close to that time of the month, especially when it is late, it is misery. Like yourself, if I sit down, it slows down. If I stand up it starts to race. On and off all day. Also when it is beating fast, I can always tell by how my stomach feels. It feels like it is tensed up, like tightened up. Then when that feels better, the racing is gone. Also you feel like, I dont know if nauseous or sick is the word, but my stomach feels slightly empty or queazy when the heart is beating faster than normal. You dont know if to eat something, sometimes that helps, or not, because sometimes it starts up after eating. The arrythmia I get that scares me, the one I described above, sounds like you get something simular. The heart pauses or slows, then I cough, and it starts to beat fast, then back to the normal rate. I do feel sometimes, not all the time depending on the severity of the event, woozy and get like a hot, flushed feeling and the end of this thing. I sound like a broken record to the cardiologist describing the same symptons to him when I go for a follow up. He cant tell me what this is until it is recorded. I will also go through a period of time where I feel fine, symptons here and there, then I will go through a period where I feel everything. I dont know if it is a sinus node problem, like that sick sinus syndrome. Who knows.

[Jodie]

I know exactly what you mean about how when you get the racing, your stomach feels tightened up.  The thing about it is, my normal heartbeat is around 72.  When I feel it racing, it is usually only around 90 or 100 (standing up) but I just don't feel normal.  My stomach is tense or it feels like there is a knot in it. I'm kind of dizzy but not really, it is so hard to describe.  And you are right, I can feel fine and then eat something and there it goes.  If I don't eat to much at one time it seems to do better, but sandwiches for some reason really set it off.  I'm on my 15th hershey kiss right now, and am having no problem.  Go figure.  My doctor told me that thin people noticed this more than others.  I'm 5'5", 105 lbs.  I do notice if I drop under 105, my heart acts up more.
I know that one episode can be really scary.  I hate it because it comes out of the blue.  You feel just fine and it happens.  The pacs and pvc's are daily occurances and you kind of get used to those.  This other one is really really scary.  It feels like my heart won't start beating again and then it takes off.  Is yours out of sync as well as fast when it starts up again?

[ZEET]

Yes, the heart racing, and extra beats, I guess they are(you feel like one beat, and then its over) as unpleasant as they are, you get use to them. But the other episode is the one the scares me like you wouldnt believe. The thing is at least with the fast rate, you know it is there, but when this thing happens, it comes out of the blue. I can get this thing when I feel absolutely fine with no other symptons, or on a day when you feel cruddy with all the other symptons. I can be doing anything and then I get a flutter or something, and I put my fingers to my neck to see what it is doing. It is either beating real slow, or out of rythm, but I think it is usually slow. I cough, not that I feel I have to cough, but that is what it seems to take it from whatever it is doing, and kick it in to a super fast rate, then back to normal.
It scary because I always think wonder if it doesnt kick from the slow rate to the fast rate. As it is beating slow, if it takes too long to go from the slow rate, that is when I start to feel like things may go to black. As of yet I never passed out. It depends how severe the event is. If it is a bad one, I will get the feeling in my head, because of the slow beating, and at the end of the event, the hot flushed feeling. Do you get the feeling you may pass out? or the hot feeling? Maybe the hot feeling comes from when the heart picks up from the slow rate to the fast rate, and the blood is being pushed up to the head? I dont know, all I know I wouldnt wish this on anyone. This event started I think in 1996. The first time I got it, I didnt know what just happen. My hands were shaking. Then it would do it once every couple of months or so. Now it happens once, sometimes more a month. I figured it out by the calendar I notice it may happen right around ovulation, and two weeks later, around that time. It happened the other day, and my hands were shaking, and I was almost in tears at the end of it. I can actually live with all the other arrythmias, but this thing I HATE. You never know where you might be when it happens, that is the other thing that is scary about it.

[MikeB]

From: Mike Brewer  70403.***@****

03 March 2001

Since posting this on 19 January 2001, I

[dodgybeats]

Here is the abstract of an article I found re: heart problems and menses, if anyone is interested.

Int J Fertil Womens Med 1997 Mar-Apr;42(2):94-100  


Palpitations: what is the mechanism, and when should we treat them?

Rosano GM, Rillo M, Leonardo F, Pappone C, Chierchia SL.

Department of Cardiology, Istituto H. San Raffaele, Milan-Rome, Italy.

Palpitation is an unpleasant awareness of an abnormal beating of the heart. This symptom may be brought on by a variety of cardiac disorders, such as cardiomyopathy, valvular heart disease, and coronary artery disease, but the most common cause is primary cardiac arrhythmias. Several noncardiac disorders may also cause palpitations, and in this case are an effect of the disease upon cardiac rhythm. Palpitations occur frequently in women at all ages, especially during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, during pregnancy, and during the perimenopausal period. Palpitations occurring at young age and associated with fast heart rate are frequently due to Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome or other forms of re-entrant tachycardia, and may require catheter ablation. A correlation between ovarian hormones and occurrence of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia has recently been reported in female patients with normal menstrual cycles; palpitations are frequently reported in cases of mitral valve prolapse, whereas episodes of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia reported during pregnancy may be due to mechanical stimuli or to a suggested arrhythmogenic effect of pregnancy. Palpitations during the perimenopausal period are usually benign and seem to be related to the increased sympathetic activity caused by the menopause. Although the vast majority of palpitations are benign and need not be treated, an electrophysiological study is indicated for those patients who have a documented episode of palpitation associated with syncope or with a pulse that is inappropriately rapid during symptoms. The treatment of palpitations due to cardiac arrhythmias is dependent upon the kind of arrhythmia detected during either invasive or noninvasive electrophysiological studies.

Publication Types:
Review
Review, tutorial

PMID: 9160219   [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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