PVCs have been awful the last couple months... anyone else?

[andrew0099]

Well, last night marked the worst bout with pvcs/pacs I have ever had.  I was getting 3 or 4 every 10 minutes for about 12 hours.  I was unable to sleep at all and had to call in sick.  While I realize many people here experience much worse, it was bad for me- which in the past has typically been 3 or 4 a week... sometimes going months without any.

For whatever reason, the last two months have been brutal!  I have had a couple blood tests recently and electrolytes are all normal (except for low vitamin d).  I am convinced that there is a relationship between eating/vagal tone and my episodes.  Back to an event monitor on Tuesday.

Anyways, wasn't really looking for any advice- my echo, stress, ekgs are all normal and I have read an endless amount on the topic.  I just wish there was a tangible, fool proof method for eliminating these stupid palpitations.

just wanted to share my experience as I know many other people here have been having really bad episodes lately.

I always find them worse in the winter??

[andrew0099]

I know for certain that a healthy diet with good sources of potassium help decrease the number of PVCs I get.  They say the standard potassium intake for an adult (without kidney problems) is anywhere from 2000-4000mg. It takes a lot of fruit to get close to this count.  If you are on Toprol, you may not need to consume quite so much because beta blockers have a tendency to raise potassium levels in the blood.  Magnesium is essentially a natural beta blocker that also helps regulate the heart, but it is a little more difficult to attain, in large quantities, through food alone.

I also notice that stomach indigestion increases the PVCs I get.  As crazy as it sounds, pepto bismol is often effective in decreasing my irregular beats (assuming stomach issues are what is causing PVCs to flare up).

With all that said, there are an endless number of suggestions out there on what minerals and supplements help decrease PVCs, but I would caution people to be very careful about making drastic changes in your supplement habits without consulting a doctor.  Every supplement and mineral that is beneficial to the heart can also be detrimental if taken in excess.

In my experience, beta blockers aren't very effective at decreasing PVCs... it is a rate control drug, and not an antiarrhythmic agent.  Not to mention that 25mg is a very low dose...  Perhaps you should consider talking to your doctor about a higher dose, and possibly switch to a different BB to test it out?  This all depends on your sensitivity to these drugs, as some people have trouble taking them.  If you are not happy with the recommendations your GP is giving you, you should always get a second opinion.

[curmudgen]

I share your concerns and you are not alone.  Not that I believe all problems are solved with drugs, but have you asked about an increase in Toprol dosage?   The things I think of when I am having an episode of PVC's is that they are benign, I don't have coronary heart disease,  I am not going to die and they will eventually subside.  I am not sure what helps anymore.

[Pepperliveson65]

I haven't had a break from PVCs in a long time, maybe a year and a half.  I have had them for about 9 years.  THey have been terrorizing me when I exercise, which really bums me out. I feel so alone, exhausted and frightened. I am currently taking 25 mg of Toprol XL.  Any suggestions about how to deal with these things?  I sometimes feel that they are driving me insane.

[munk1958]

You sound like me. I've had mine for over 30 years, and 2 weeks ago they went crazy, after about 8 good months. I'm wondering if I'm going to ever be somewhat normal again. It's 12.48 am, and I'm on the computer cause PVC-s are keeping me awake. It's a wonderful life..! Mark

[RNRita]

Join the club.  Had about 9 great months last year, then about December they started back and have gotten considerably worse.  I have been having the worst time with them then I've ever had the last month.  And that is saying something since I've had them for 34 years. I have a cure.....I put a holter monitor on...they stop....:(

[erijon]

I have to agree, my PVC's have been on a very bad run the last few months, mostly due to high stress (job related) and very little sleep, maybe 3 or 4 hours a night. I have seen my doctor a couple times over the past few weeks due to a sinus infection and we have spoken about it. He's taken a listen and told me they were "good, clean PVC's". I asked him what that meant and he said my heart sounded just fine between beats, no AFIB, no extra sounds and no funny rhythms and on a steady, stable pace just throwing some PVC's. He said nothing that needs to be seen by a cardiologist again. He said since my last echo in Dec 2007, my BP has been controlled and my exercise tolerance is very high so no need for tests as nothing has changed that would be seen on tests. He said a stress test would show me what I already know, I can acheive 10 -11 mets with no problem with more in reserve and an echo would not be likely to show any changes since everything else is fine and I feel well. As he said, "if you hang out at the pool, some day you'll take a dip". (sounds like something one of the docs here used to say) His point was, if you start asking for unnecessary tests, you are risking a false positive, especially over something like PVC's so I guess I'll just take his word for it and keep going.

Nice to know I have "good, clean PVC's" though:)