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Questions posted in the
Heart Forum have been answered by doctors from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
Question Title: Fast Heartbeat in Upright PositionForum: The Heart Forum
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| Thanks for your 11/26 response to my earlier post "Rapidly Flucating Heartbeat". Over the past few days I have really been monitoring my heart rate and I have a few more questions that I hope can shed some light on what might be going on. First of all, I am a 34 year old female, 5'7", 137 lbs. I don't smoke, drink, and my cholesterol levels have always been between 160-180. I take Synthroid daily due to having previous thyroid cancer. My last TSH test was taken 2 weeks ago and was normal at 2.1. Recently I first noticed that I was caffeine senstive all of a sudden. Then when I was visiting my endocrinologist last week, he discovered that my heart rate was normal while lying down (68). Upon sitting up it was 94. When I stand it goes to about 110. If I have any caffeine, the same pattern happens, yet my standing heartrate could be as high as 140. So, I've cut the caffeine. I had also been on Prilosec for the past 9 weeks due to some mild reflux. I've also stopped that--4 days now. My blood pressure is normal (about 110/78). When I stand it does not seem to drop at all. Doctor verified this also. I notice that this situation is much worse during the earlier part of the day and seems to disappear by late afternoon/early evening. I am also experiencing some mild vestibular neuritis. This may or may not occur with the rapid heart rate. When my heart rate does go up, I sometimes feel a little off balance, sometimes not. The other thing I have noticed is that my heart rate rises much higher than it should (about 120) when I am doing mild exertion. I just washed my dog and I feel like I've run a marathon. If I go up and down the stairs at home, this also gets to me. Everything was fine only a month ago. What could be going on?? It is hard for me to believe I have some sort of heart disease although anything is possible. My doctor thinks I may have some autonomic nervous system disorder and wants to watch it for a few weeks. If things don't improve I assume I will see a cardiologist. Is it okay to wait it out? Any suggestions/thoughts of what MIGHT be happening would be greatly appreciated. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dear Christine As long as you are not having any troubling symptoms with the fast heart rates, I think it is probably OK to wait a couple of weeks before seeing a cardiologist. I do think you should wear a Holter monitor (portable EKG) to document the presence of the fast heart rates and to see exactly what they are. I hope this has been useful. Feel free to write back with further questions. Good luck. Information provided here is of a general nature. Specific diagnoses and treatments can only be made by your doctor. If you would like to be seen at the Cleveland Clinic, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE for an appointment with a cardiologist at Desk F15.
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