LBBB, PVC's, leaky Mitral

[stephanie]

I am 26 years old. I had a hysterectomy 3 years ago and CAHD runs in my family (I know this is not what I have).  My dad had his 1st major at age 29.  I have a leaky mitral and tricuspid valve, LBBB morphology, and frequent PVC's (Holtor showed 2500 in 24 hours). I take Atenolol 50 mg. once a day (it has been 8 months now), which has not helped out too much with the PVC's and chest pain.  My doctor already increased my medicine once and when I asked him about changing or increasing my med. again he just wants me to come back in March.  Should I get a second opinion or just wait until March to see my Dcotor?  Also, for a few months my right leg & foot gets cold and cramps real bad every night.  Sometimes if I walk for a while my leg itches real bad (without a rash).  I was told to take Aleve or Advil for this.  Could this be caused from my medicine or a circulitory problem?  Thanks for taking time to answer my question and have a good day!

[Momto3]

Hello.  I am not a doctor just a forum participant.  I was reading your post and noticed that you have new shortness of breath and a leaky mitral valve.  I also have a leaky mitral valve and go for semi-annual checkups (one regular echo and one stress echo every year).  I do know that valves can go bad relatively quickly, so I'm not sure I understand why your cardio isn't asking for a new echo.  When was the last time you had an echo?  

Kudos to you on the lap swimming!  That is great!!  

connie

[patd.]

I am 72 yrs. old.  Quit smoking almost 8 yrs. ago.  I have a diagnosed leaky mitral valve.  I go the cardiologist for check ups every 6 months.  I also was a lap swimmer for 26 yrs.  The last 8 or 9 months I have had shortness of breath on walking, swimming, or exerting myself.  I am very tired all the time.  The reg. Dr., says the cardiologist should check the valve again.  The cardiologist says no necessary as yet.  This valve thing was diagnosed a long time ago.  However its just in the last couple of years it has really bothered me.  I have also had atrial fib and take medication for that and for blood pressure.  Should I get a second opinion from another cardiologist????  I am tired of being tired.  

[phyllis]

MY MOTHER IS A VERY ACTIVE AND HEALTHY SEVENTY YEAR OLD.  SHE RECENTLY HAD A DIZZY EPISODE THAT LASTED A FEW MINUTES AND ONE SIDE OF HER FACE WENT NUMB.  I BELIEVE IT WAS THE RIGHT SIDE.  I WAS TOLD THAT HER EYES DIALATED AND SHE WAS TOO WEAK TO STAND ON HER OWN.  SHE WAS TAKEN TO EMERGENCY AND THEY DID BLOOD TESTS AND AN EKG AND KEPT HER ABOUT SIX HOURS.  THE NUMBNESS IN HER FACE WAS GONE AFTER A FEW HOURS AND SHE WAS A BIT WEAK FOR A FEW DAYS.  SHE HAS SINCE WORN A HEART MONITOR FOR A WEEK AND NOTHING HAPPENED TO INDICATE A PROBLEM.  SHE HAS AN APPOINTMENT IN A WEEK TO HAVE HER HEARING AND BALANCE CHECKED.  SHE SAYS HER EARS PLUG FREQUENTLY AND SHE THINKS SHE MAY JUST HAVE AN INNER EAR PROBLEM.  THE ONLY THING THAT WAS DIAGNOSED WAS LBBB AND IT WAS RECOMMENDED THAT SHE QUIT SMOKING. I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO FIND SOMETHING ON THE INTERNET AS TO WHAT LBBB IS AS THEY DID NOT INFORM HER AS TO WHAT THIS IS OR THE SERIOUSNESS OF THIS CONDITION.  I SPECIFICALLY WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IN SIMPLE TERMS WHAT LBBB IS AND IF SHE SHOULD BE DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT.  HER FAMILY LIVES WELL INTO THEIR NINETIES AND I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE HER AROUND AT LEAST ANOTHER TWENTY YEARS OR SO.  I WOULD APPRECIATE ANY INFORMATION.
                               THANKS

[jane d]

I have shown irregular EKGs, had a stress test, thalium stress test and finally an angiogram. When I was infused, I had a very bad reaction to the infusion -- shaking and bouncing -- then I don't remember anything. The test showed mitral valve prolapse and regurgitaion -- no blockages. This was four years ago.
I'm in great shape -- very active -- teach junior high, work out,
and go to grad school -- a family with two teen age boys.

My heart started jumping anad beating fast -- over the past year.
Then it hurt -- sometimes sharp pains -- but usually it felt as though something heavy was pressing on my chest. This went on for about two months.
I saw my cardiologist. I am now on a beta blocker... Kerlone.
I find I don't have the energy I used to have. I get out of breath sometimes. I'd like to find out the side effects of this drug. Are these characteristics normal?

[Linda Gehrke]

My mother has been experiencing discomfort near her heart and has seen a cardiologist who did several tests including a valve test.  She is being asked for a follow-up test for a leaking valve.  She is 79 years old and very worried.  What is a leaking valve?  What possible treatments are there other than surgery?

[To Joan from Denise]

Dear Joan,

You won't get an answer on here under someone else's posting due to they have had to cut back.  I'm not a doctor but I did have MVP with a successful repair 7 months ago.  I was wondering if you take any meds for the MVP?  When they put me on Lisinopril and Toprol I started having PVC's and continued after surgery until they took me off.  I did not have them before the meds but was given these meds to slow my heart down.  My MVP hit suddenly with no warning, so I was at a 4+ when told I needed surgery.  If you do some research on here I'm sure you'll find some answers that say you are far away from surgery.  Just go to the search button and type in MVP.  Please don't worry about the surgery.  It wasn't a picnic but the end result is worth it.  I first said I would never go through it again, but it's like having a baby.  It's worth it and yes, you would go through it again to gain the same result.  My email is ***@**** if I can help in anyway.

[joan nagen]

I have been diagnosed as having a mitral valve prolapse many years ago and about 2 yrs. ago began experiencing palpatations, some of which seemed rather severe. I have been under the care of a cardiologist and he regularly does a echo-stress test((once/year). My last test, done in October showed Mitral valve insufficiency with leakage. He said we are not talking surgury here, but his nurse practitioner informed me that the leakage is a grade 2.  I am 63 yrs.old and am terrified that i may have to have a mitral valve transplant. Meanwhile, I have to see him again in March for another echocardiagram. Do you think I should seek another opinion????  I have frequent pvc's and ectopic beats, which scare the life right out of me.

[Ann]

I am a 44 year old lady, I was in top physical shape, walking 5 miles a day (a 10 min. mile) and doing high impact aerobics about 4 times a week.   I am not overweight.  In early August I had an allergic reaction and went to the ER for treatment.  The nurse accidently injected the epinephrine into my IV instead of a muscle.  I suffered with acute headache pain, some abdominal pain and extreme fatigue.  I was kept overnight, they monitored my heart in ICU.  I had suffered extremely high blood pressure throughout the reaction and the hours following, exteme PVCs and a racing heart rate.
The headache continued and lasted about 5 weeks, waning as the time moved on.  Anything that brought up my heartrate, made the pain worse.  I suffered from severe weakness immediately and it has not gotten any better.

My symptoms are: chest pressure and chest pain, shortness of breath, fatigue.  It increases with activity, for example, I have found I can no longer shower, if I do, I am in bed to recover for about 30 minutes.  A hot bath makes my heart pound and leaves me weak, laying on my left side, using my arms too much at once, bending over, a heavy meal, going up stairs etc. all make it harder to breath and I need to sit down and recover.

My ECG's I think are normal, an echo showed a small defect but apparently not life-threatening, I suffer from major pvcs since and a racing heart and inconsistent high blood pressure, up on minute, normal the next.  I recently had a thallium scan done and it showed a blocked coronary artery, and I am now scheduled for an angiogram and likely they say angioplasty.

My doctor suspects the epinephrine caused spasms that damaged the lining of the coronary and that it is likely I have a blood clot there.  Do you think this is likely, and have you heard of anything like this before?

[jan]

Dear Stephanie,  I have Raynaud's disease, because of spasms of the vessels my feet get cold and the nails turn purple, I have also had muscle spasms (just last night in fact).  If you notice your nails turning color, it could very well be you have it,too. When I first started the atenolol I had pain, but it didn't last but 2 weeks, approx.  I have read that atenolol can aggravate Raynaud's, so you might want to check into it.  :o)

[Cleveland Clinic, MD]

Dear Stephanie,

My general advice about second opinions is this:  On the one hand 1) A second opinion never hurts  2)If you are unhappy with the interaction you are having with your doctor a different doctors personality may help 3) If your doctor seems unused to treating the type of condition you have or dosen't seem up to date a second opinion may help.  On the other hand 1) A second opinion costs more money and uses up more of the health system resources. 2) If you get two (or more) different opinions it can sometimes be confusing which one to believe. 3) Sometimes things take a while to work and time is all that is needed.

Ultimately the choice is up to you.  Be sure to get copies of all your medical records to take with you to any second opinion.