Post-afib PVC's: Need for worry?

Posted by Guy Venuti on May 10, 1999 at 18:50:14
Hi.  First I want to thank you and everyone else who has contributed to this page.  It has done alot for my mental health to know others out there are experiencing similar signs.  I am a first year medical student who had a lone afib that was brought on by high levels of caffeine.  This occured in July of 1998, and I was put on dig and aspirin for about three months.  After seeing a cardiologist who didn't think I had anything to worry about, I started a vigourous exercise proggram to work off some of the fat that medical school has so generously donated to me (study, study, study, eat, eat, eat).  Recently, I started experiencing what I felt were missed beats, and a concomittant feeling of having to cough.  I saw my cardiologist who told me they were PVC's, and not to worry.  OK.  Some days I get alot of them, maybe 30-40 in a day.  Some days I get a few, maybe none.  Like a good student, I have been trying to relate occurrence to a specific cause, but the only thing that seems to bring them on is certain movements.   TSH levels are normal, my Dad had (has) Graves and I had a grandmother who had an aortic aneurysm.  I have never had a heart problem, and I had an echo done which was completely normal.  In fact , all of my tests were normal.  My question to you is this:  Should I be concerned with the frequency or quantity of these "benign" events?  Could the arrhythmia have done something to my heart, or what about the dig?
Thanks again.
Respectfully,
Guy

Posted by CCF CARDIO MD - MTR on May 11, 1999 at 14:48:20
Dear Guy, thank you for your question.  I remember the medical school days well and I think you are right to pursue an exercise program rather than eating and studying all the time.  You may very well have had lone afib caused by caffeine ingestion.  If your echocardiogram is normal, then you are most likely experiencing benign PVC's now.   Benign PVC's are present in people with no structural heart disease.  Benign PVC's will not harm you and do not portend a bad prognosis, but they can certainly be a nuisance.  Common precipitants of PVC's that you should avoid include alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine.  Otherwise, I don't think any lingering effects from digoxin could be implicated.  
I hope you find this information useful.  Information provided in the heart forum is for general purposes only.  Only your physician can provide specific diagnoses and therapies. Please feel free to write back with additional questions.  Good luck.
If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter.   The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.