Further Tests Required after Catherization

[SCRunner]

Thanks for the forum. I am a 44 year old Male, no family history of heart problems. Cholesterol has always been around 130, blood pressure normal. At one time, weight was an issue, but over the last 6 months have lost approximately 40 pounds, now weigh around 190.
Three years ago, I spent the night at the hospital suffering from Chest Pains. The following day, a stress Echocardiogram was done and results were fine. Two years ago, with pains continuing, visted another cardiologist.  A nuclear stress test was done and a potential problem was found. A Catherization was done and everything was found to be ok.
Since that time, I have continued to be bothered by Chest discomfort. As mentioned above, started a pretty extensive exercise program to lose weight. Currently work out at least 1/2 to one hour 6 days a week. Before starting this program, revisited my cardiologist just to be sure, he said all was well.
Lately, I have started to feel flutters/skips in my heart pattern. It passes quickly with little or no pain. At times, I still feel the chest pains, but they are not severe and disapper quickly, or within a short time.

My question...is there anything else I need to do to follow up on this? I am sure my cardiologist is as tired of seeing me as I am of seeing him. I just want to make sure that is nothing else I should be following up on.

Thanks for the advice.

[nigel2323]

I am 18 years old and have been having problems with chest pain, shortness of breathe, and sinus tachycardia for some time now. I have had a nuclear stress test, stress echocardiogram, and blood work after the episodes of pain. I

[Jeff-67]

Amen.

I am at the point where I say to myself ... "If this is God's plan for me, then why am I trying to fight it".

godsproperty000, gald to hear that the irregular beats have reduced in frequency.  Maybe that is because you are less stressed? I think the good doctor said to you last time that you posted that if you had blockages the irregular beats would probably not be due to that, so don't be discouraged if that turns out to be the case.

[godsproperty000]

I would love to know the success rate of having drug stents put in. I have been researching ( I should never do that) and the outlook doesnt look so great..lovely..now I got the fear to deal with all over again!!

[godsproperty000]

Cant argue with that.

[Jeff-67]

Please do not think I am belittling your situation.  This is a huge victory for you and you are an inspiration for those who have been shunned time and again for worrying after being told there is nothing wrong when things just don't add up. I can imagine how it must feel to have all your concerns over the years vindicated.  I agree with you that it is hard to believe that when the heart beats in these funny ways that it is the way it was meant to be.  That is the big battle we all face. I guess you had the other complicating factor of the chest pain, which I assume was due to the blockages. I wanted to ask you, have your PVCs subsided? Were they the result of the blockages or were they incidental?

Good luck!

[dafan]

Hi.... I like you had all the tests... all normal....just wondering about the frequency of you guys pvc's... ive been thru all the same exact things.... wife doesnt understand... but when i can feel those thumps in my chest and throat... it is not i repeat not normal...hammerhead... when i first started having pvc's about a year ago... they were only at night for about 2 hrs... then all last summer they essentially subsided... oh i might have 20 thru the day... then this fall my wife went in for surgery and i got stressed that morning and they came back with a vengeance... funny thing tho... now they are the worst in the morning subsiding quite a bit around lunch... however... mine stop occurring with exercise but they do return after my heart rate slows back down to around 100 beats.... so i think it is a little after cool down phase... i have them at a rate of about from 2 to 8 per minute in the morning.... it is hard to take  but i am trying my best to cope and ignore them... ... funny thing i insisted on a echo after i had my holter last spring... it came back normal.... however i have been very athletic all my life and years ago i had a xray for ribs being cracked and the nurse said.... your heart looks a little enlarged.... that was when i was in my mid 20's now im 50... the echo didnt show enlargement the dr said... and my ef was 63... sorry about the  rambling letter....

[godsproperty000]

Actually my pvc's werent really that frequent. The ones I felt were maybe about 20 a day. I wore a 30 day event monitor and everytime I called an event in..they said the ekg was normal and they did see the pvc's but that they werent concerned enough to call the doctor. I especially got pvcs after eating or at night in bed. But I still knew..that any heartbeat like that could not possibly be normal. Insist my friend!!

[Jeff-67]

I feel for your situation, I really do.  I myself keep thinking "this cannot be right", but I am now seeing a shrink for OCD over the problem. I think this is a delicate issue, as your comments will freak a lot of people out. The reality is that pretty much everyone gets these ectopics, so I don't think you can say that this in itself means something is wrong. I do wonder what the significance is in why some of us feel them and some of us don't.

[godsproperty000]

I certainly didnt mean to scare anyone..especially since I know what living with the crippling fear is like. My concern is to let people know..that medicine is not an exact science and if you in your heart feel there is something wrong..then please push the issue with any doctor who will listen. PVC's may be "normal" for some people..but really..come on...do you honestly think that that is the way the heart is meant to beat? Something causes them. Most of the time they may be benign..but there has got to be a reason they start. I still stand by my prior statements about getting thoroughly checked and go with your gut feeling. If I didnt...I may not have ever got to voice my opinion. Maybe thats why I went thru this..is to inform others. There is a reason for everything and God always brings something good out of the bad. Bless you.

[godsproperty000]

Oh yeah..I forgot to mention...before this happened to me..the very same thing happened to my next door neighbor..AND my nurse practioner admitted that the very same thing happened to her neighbor...so you see..this is a common but not publicized situation.

[godsproperty000]

I live in a bigger city...Ft. Lauderdale. I do have heart disease in my family..grandparents..mother. My heart flutters started out about 7 years ago..then became PVC's. I had all the test done..and they all came back normal..but I couldnt help thinking..this is NOT normal. That is not the way God made our hearts to beat. I did alot of internet research..praying...tests..all kinds of things..but I knew deep down something was not right..and the docs and family and friends already wrote me off as a hypochondriac. Even my husband. I was about suicidal because I knew there was something wrong and no one would help or believe me. Finally I found a doc who believed me the first day I met him. Thank God!!! He sent me for the cath that same day and I live to tell about it..Please people...dont think all those tests are all you need!!! They are not 100%!! They just told me I had a heart of a 20 yr old!! yeah right. The sad part is...is that I dont believe doctors anymore. Insist people!! I'm telling you!! You know your body best!! Dont let the doctors kill you by neglect.

[tickertock]

Sound like you been through one ordeal since you last posted, I am glad to know your problem was caught in the nick of time and that you followed your gut feelings, also that your cardio didn't blow you off. Best wishes for a speedy recovery and good luck.

Are you irregular beats less now? I know you didn't mean to scare anyone, anyone with your experience would feel the way you do, but the vast majority of persons experience PVcs and palpitations, some can be disabled by rather minor benign arrhythmias, while others with dangerous arrhythmias happening to them are completely unaware of their serious irregular heartbeat.

I would tend to agree with Jeff that your problem don't really affect the majority of the population or the majority of those that post here that suffer from PVCs, the good news is that your problem was caught in time and that you have a new least on life, once again Best wishes for a speedy recovery and good luck.

[tickertock]

When I said I agreed with you, I know I didn't excatly quote your comment, I just interpreted that was what you meant, if you meant otherwise I apologize.  regards.

[Jeff-67]

Your interpretation was correct!

[PikaPika88]

Hi,
I strongly want to share the feeling with 2 of you.  One evening I came back from shopping with the dizzyness, nausea, chest tight and palpitation. I laid on bed.  I wish my husband can take me to the hospital.  He spoke to me "I think you need to go and find the full time job. The more you laid on the bed the sicker you get."  I just get up the bed with tears and start with my houseworks.  He thought I'm a bionic women because I've a pacemaker.  My GP always think I'm not right, want me to attending ER.  ER said I'm OK nothing wrong with my heart.  I was hanging in between.  Now my cardiology want me to take beta-blocker.  I think Dr can consult the heart problems (sometimes) but never can mended my broken heart.
Pika.

[godsproperty000]

Tickertock...as for the pvc's its funny but they really arent as frequent as they were before the cath. I have felt a few..but am sure that when my valves get used to pumping that extra blood they were denied for so long..that my heart will start beating the way it was meant to. As for you Pika..sound to me like you are suffering from depression. I had been dealing with that for the past two years..and was getting to the point of suicide..please seek help..and if the dr. suggests beta blockers..go for it!! But also seek help for depression because that is very debilitating. I dont know if you are a spirtual person..but if you are...then realize...you are NOT ALONE in these ordeals...good does come out of them...its all in His plan. Keep me posted!! God Bless.. Ps to anyone out there...I would be more than happy to have phone conversations with anyone who just needs to talk..just let me know.

[Gaspipe]

HI all, one thing you guys are missing on the PVC front is that long standing PVC's present for many years  combined with normal testing  are a diferent animal than recent onset pvc's that begin  when one is older. Also those Type A people so obcessed with every heart beat may in fact be placing themselves at greater risk for cardiac disease.Bottom line is you could associate heart attacks with a full moon if you tried hard enough. So associating PVC's with heart disease in the presence of normal testing simply does not bear fruit{if you believe in the current scientific literature}. And remember there are always false postives and negatives. So the fact remains that the vast majority of people with PVC's do not have underlying heart disease.Bottom line... you best enjoy life as it's  way to short to begin with anyway .  I remain Gaspipe

[HAMMERHEAD]

I a'am wondering some of the samethings. My pvc's happen when I'm cooling down from  working or after I eat or just at random. I like you have had test(regular stress,echo stress,cardio lite stress,calcium scoring,ekg,blood work ect). Do you have a family history of heart problems? Do you live in a large city area or small town area? Myself I'm in the Dallas,Texas area. Thanks for more info.

[dafan]

Dear friend... Just wondering... how frequent were your pvc's... just wondering... did they increase in frequency over the time period??? Just wondering... i have been having them for a year and they occur in certain patterns. Usually subsiding in the afternoon and evening and rarely have them at night?? Do you have patterns of these.. thanks so much...

[godsproperty000]

I feel your pain runner! To make a xtra long story as short as possible..for 2-3 years I had started having pvcs and various pains. I had visited many emergency rooms and bothered my PCP often. I was given all the cardiac tests available other than a catheter. I was told that my heart was fine because I passed all the test and to stop worrying..it was all in my head. Last week I was admitted to a hospital for chest and arm pains and after a stress test that showed I had a heart of a 20 yr old. (ha!)  and two days..they sent me home. The following tuesday I went to a cardiologist I had never seen before and was having the same pains..he would not let me leave the office. He called 911 and sent me to a different hospital and did a catheter on me that afternoon. I had a 90% blockage and had to put 3 stints in. That was 2 days ago. I am 39 years old..somewhat oveweight..and quit smoking more than a week ago. This whole thing has scared the bejeezus outta me. Now I am home and very much afraid of each pain that I get..such as jaw..back..arm..I dont know what to do. I had posted earlier on this site about "Could all those tests be wrong"? the answer...YES!!! The only foolproof test is a cardio cath..and then I still wonder..even when the stints are put in..what are my risks now? Next step...pyschiatrist? My biggest dissappointment..is how all the prior doctors made me feel it was in my head..but I knew...and thank God I persisted or I may not be writing this now. God Bless you.

[Cleveland Clinic]

SC,

Thanks for the post.

Itr sounds like you've had a very thorough workup. Generally your health problems can be managed by a general internist. He/she may also be able to help you get to the root of your continuing symptoms.

good luck