Palpitations When Inactive

[terk]

Can you please give me your opinion of the following from another discussion board. The author is not an MD but I was interested in her comment because most of my episodes start when I am at rest - just reading or working on my computer and I can't believe that palpitations "just happen" without some overt cause ...

"I would say that your attacks are brought on in the late afternoon and early evenings because you are resting. This allows your heart rate to go low, too low so that your adrenals kick in to speed it up a bit, but over compensates." (And therefore afib is the result.)

She goes on to say this is a symptom of vagal afibbers - a term that my MD never brought up. Is this distinction significant?

My question is this - if her assessment is accurate, and I am on metoprolol which is meant to slow down the heart rate - is the medication counterproductive because it works too well, bringing down the heart rate to a point where "adrenals kick in" and palpitations start? What would be the harm if I test this theory by reducing my medication so that the heart rate wouldn't go down that far?

And finally, what's your opinion of taking Coenzyme-CQ10? Many thanks!

[CCF-M.D.-RCJ]

terk,

Vagally-mediated atrial fibrillation (VMAF) is indeed a distinct diagnosis and carries different treatment options than "generic" afib.  Mant patients with VMAF expereince palpitations that awaken them from sleep, that occur after large meals, or after exercise.  Some will also experience VMAF when just resting, such as in the late afternoon or after lunch.

Although the theory has not been rigorously tested, it may be that some medications that slow down the heart rate (such as metoprolol) may aggravate the condition. Potential alternative treatments would include such medicines as disopyramide or acebutolol (a beta-blocker that does not slow the heart rate as much).

I would caution any patient to not change his/her medicines without talking about the change with his/her doctor.  Certainly bring up the possibility of VMAF.

The adrenal glands have nothing to do with this type of afib, however.

The only thing Coenzyme-Q10 has ever been proven to accomplish is to give you expensive urine.

Hope that helps.

[Silverfern]

I have a trick that I have never heard anywhere elas that I use when experencing heart palpatations. My first
Heart palpatation when I was 5 at school in the mid eighties and for a few years my parents did not do much, I was getting them a couple of times a year. Then when a doctor dianosed me about 8 and I saw a specsilist about 12. I have had them all my life and learnt to put up with them. Apart from a shot of Becroln the only other way to stop them is strange enough as it is, a hand stand. I did 11 years of gymnastics as a child, and when a heart doc. gave me a list of things to stop a h.p which were, making myself faint, vomiting, and pinching the bridge of my nose between the eyes. Unfortunately none of these worked and I have never been able to hold onto my breath long enough to faint, I knew that I was light headed after hand stands from gymnastics and I started doing them to help with the fainting. What do you know but they stopped the h.p. , I found I have to do them straight away and I would only recomnend it for the body able. Still sometimes they do not work and I am forced to go to a hosipatel. When the h.p do stop from a handstand I can feel it mainly in the back of my knees, the vein seems to throb there, it is a fantastic feeling.
On average I recieve about 6-8 a year now and in my early 20 's, there are a still a few major life changes that I could make to help stop them and am on my way.

[karie]

Have you had any trouble with potassium levels ?
I have many pvc's with meals.
Is the function of eating causing stress on the stomach ?
Turned my holter-monitor in today.