Premature Heartbeats

[ralph_d]

I'm a fairly healthy 36 year old male that was diagnosed with premature heartbeats(PVC's)about 2 years ago.  I had an EKG, Holter Monitor, Stress test and Sonogram of my heart and everything checked out fine...well aside from the PVC's which my doc said were harmless. At that time I was give a very low dose of Toporol, so low that my cardiologist didn't think it would do much, and it didn't.  He told me that if they did go away they most likely would return. He was right, they did subside for about a year but are now back in full effect.  

I seems as if eating triggers them.  I'm on Aciphex for stomach issues I have(acid reflux, heartburn) and I take Advair for my asthma.  

I'm wondering about the correlation between my eating and the PVC's.  Anyone else have these symptoms?

Also, the PVC's don't occur in the morning, it's generally after lunch and get worse after dinner.

I know these aren't harmful...as I've been told, but they are very annoying and leave me feeling as if my heart is going to stop.  I've stopped drinking anything with caffiene, I don't smoke or take any kinds of stimulants.

I recently moved and have a new primary care physician and she's running some blood tests and has order yet another holter, but I just know they are going to tell me the same thing I was told 2 years ago.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

=Ralph-

[deedle1976]

Ralph,
I already replied but it doesn;t seem to have worked for some reason.

I asked my doctor to go on Acebutolol (sectral) after reading a study which showed that it drcresed the number of PVCs by >70% in most people who took it (as opposed to just reducing the sensation). I had tried propranolol before and it didn't reduce the frequency at all.
I started having thousands of PVCs during pregnancy and these decreased to hundreds per day afterwards but still very debilitating as I feel every single one as a flip flopping sensation.
I am so glad I asked for the acebutolol as I have been taking it for 10 days and since then have been down to one PVC per hour or less. I am taking a very low dose.
My quality of life had improved so much. I had forgotten what it was like to feel normal as I felt anxious all the time and couldn't relax due to the frequent PVC's.

[Ginasouthcarolina]

Hi i am new hear and i was reading all your posts..i just started getting these "things" my doc said short burst of v-tach which i am learning is a long runn of pvcs i had 3 then normal then 4. that was last month then i had it again 3 days ago..but i also have severe gerd...when i ended up in the hospital last month for this i had just started taking protonix, i stopped taking it and was taking zantac otc...and nothing then my doc put me on nexuim which really helps..but 1 day later it happened again is nexium or protonix considerd a ppi? i wonder if all of this is inter-related..i also have anxiety disorder..mmmm i wonder

[ralph_d]

Thanks all for the replies.  I'm going to continue talking to my doctor about the meds I'm taking and their effect on my PVC's.

One other thing, I was a daily marijuana user.  I talked to my cardiologist and he didn't think there is any correlation between using marijuana and PVC's.  

I've stopped using but it had no effect on lessening the PVC's.  Anyone have any insight on this?

Thanks again!

-Ralph-

[SillyHeart]

Many, many people have noticed the correlation between digestive processes and palpitations.  Search the board or google and you'll find that it's very common for folks to report this.

[nikgirl28]

I am going through that now...I ate something greasy three days ago and I'm still experiencing the heartburn and palps...it doesn't matter what i eat I get the palps a half an hour to a couple of hours afterward...also always after lunch and dinner...
what do your skipped beats feel like?
mine feel like a fluttery light skipped beat...then normal beat beat beat then skip...beat beat beat skip...for like a minute...or i will just get the fluttery light skipped beat once in a while...i hate this heartburn i also get a pain in the middle of my chest and it radiates to my back...

[Celeste77]

I also have increased PVC's after eating, especially heavy meals in the evening.
I've found that very small meals for a few days helps calm them down and I can eat pretty normally for a few days after. Certain foods and additives seem to trigger mine also like, spicy foods, rich pasta's, heavy gravies or desserts, anything with MSG, Aspartame, potassium citrates, or sulfites.
I also have GERD and I know without a doubt that it in itself can trigger my PVC's,  so any know trigger of the GERD, is probably going to get the PVC's going too.

Just a thought, I had to stop using Aciphex. It actually increased my PVC's by about 50%. Irregular heartbeats are one of the known side effects with all PPI's and H2-antagonists, although it is usually rare. It might be worth a shot to stop the Aciphex (with your docs approval of course) for a few days and see if your PVC's quiet down abit. I have to use Gavison tablets which actually seems to slow the PVC's because of the magnesium chloride. Sometimes we just have to go with the lesser of two evils. I hate my GERD, but I hate my PVC's much more.

Celeste