Skipped Heart Beats (PVC's

[alexawesome1]

Hello Doctor, I wanted to take a moment to thank you for hosting this forum, I've posted once before and have found it very informative and helpful, thank you!
I have a few questions concerning PVC's & PAC's. I have been evaluted by two different cardiologists with a battery of tests and everthing is normal, noted 1/2 apical ejection (flow) murmur only (28 year old male, 5' 11", 190LBS, athletic).
1. From what I understand now, PVC's & PAC's are not harmful, is either worse than the other? ie. more PVC's
2. Is the sensation of a skipped beat the result of an extra beat or is the sensation from the extra flow of blood resulting from a longer pause in the heart rythm?
3. If an individual is experiencing for example 1,000 PAC's/PVC's on a daily basis, does that signify an extra 1,000 beats? Wouldn't these extra beats over a span of an average life "tire" the heart muscle?
4. I notice in my resting pulse only (around 48-52BPM) that  sometimes after relaxing from either a work-out or just normal activity that a few beats are longer apart then others, however this is pattern is repeatitive, meaning the longer pause are not totally random but will repeat after the same number of beats per minute. My question is what's considered and irregular to regular pulse?
5. From your experience with past and present patients, have you seen any individuals experiencing PVC's/PAC's every go away entirely?
6. Are they the cause of some part of SA/NA node's deteriating?
7. Lastly on average, individuals with normal healthy hearts with benign PVC's/PAC's develop other serious conditions?

[urrl122]

I have had PVC's for about two years. They have been as bad as 1 skip out of every two almost daily. Nothing worked except amiodarone, which I feared would have long run bad side effects like liver problems. I did the following, don't know which did the trick but SOMETHING WORKED.
Lost about 7 lbs eating mostly veggies, since the byproducts they feed livestock can be the cause.
Since my cholesterol level was 255 the doc suggested I take flax seed and garlic. I bought flax seed oil at whole foods and use it with olive oil and seasonings to make my own dressing (NO MSG)
I mainly keep sweet potatoes handy; throw them in the microwave at work or home. The less hungry I am the less tempted I am to go to a fast food place. Now the skips which have plagued me for two years are practically gone and I live like a normal human being; no more dizzy spells or lethargy from zebeta, etc.

[jimmyb]

Hi, everybody! I have dealt with pvc's for more than 30 years and I am still going strong! They are a pain in the a** but everything I've read ana dll the docs I've talked with are convinced it is no big deal. I was given toprol by my doctor to take occasionally when the pvc's interfere with my sleep. Any comments about this? I am a little anxious about taking any medication. I would rather just be annoyed. What about ablation? Sounds like a great remedy, but I have heard that things can go wrong. Any comments or advice? Thanks

[dusty111]

I was diagnosed with PVCs several years ago. I went through several recurring episodes, and after investigation was told they could be due to a slight prolapse of my mitral valve. After understanding what was happening, I relaxed and the episodes were less frequent. I continued to monitor myself and found that any occurence was only during PMS (I'm female). I thought it was due to the emotional stress that I felt at those times. But now that I'm 49 and quite sure I'm in peri-menopause, I'm having very frequent occurences again. But there seems to be a pattern with my monthly cycles, and I'm sure my hormones are surging and fluctuating. Has anyone (female) experienced PVCs during their cycles? I would be very interested in finding out if they have any relation to hormone levels.  Dusty111

[babycakes]

Hi! I just can't express the joy I am feeling at this very moment after learning that I am not alone! I have been bothered with PVCs and palps since the age of 13.  I am now 21 and still being annoyed daily by all the weird sensations.  Since I can't ever seem to post my question with the doc, I was wondering if someone might be able to PLEASE answer this question for me.  You see, not only do I get the funny feeling heart skips, but sometimes my heart feels like it completely stops for a brief second and I feel this wave of fear wash over my entire body.  I also feel this fluttering in my neck sometimes.  Has anyone else experienced the long pause followed by the wave or the fluttering in the neck??? I see my cardio doc once a year and everything looks normal. Also, God bless you all and keep your heads up!! I know it's tough, but we can get through this aggravating stuff if we all continue to help eachother.

[chrisr]

This is a very informaive exchange of comments and I wouldlike to aadd my own, After triple CABG and AVR (ST.Jude) in June 2000 I remained completely awareof every single heart beat. At first they were hard fast beats which the cardios said to ignore and that they would go away. They never did. About 6 months ago I started with missbeats and after an ER visit the diagnosis was - No arrhythmia but SINUS ARRHYTHMIA! Which according to Fred is nothing to wprry about. Echos revealed slight valve regugitation  - tricuspid and may be pulmonary. A 30 day monitor also revealed PACs/PVCs? but still the medical advice is to ignore these. But how can I when they awake me at 4am and its impossible to sleep after these episodes which have become quite frequent and are increasing in duration (1-3 hrs). The PACs/PVCs also seem to be highly related to what and when I eat particularly at dinner time. As a diabetic I monitor my blood glucose regularly and the missbeats also seem to be related to moderately low BG. I am on Coumadin and sleep tablets and sedatives also help but I cannot be on these forever. Would appreciate comments or advice from anyone with similar condition or can be contacted at ***@****
Thanks,
ChrisR

[alexawesome1]

Hi there Fred, thanks for the info, you sound like a Cardiologist yourself. If PVC's/PAC's are a predictor for sudden death, then wouldn't every single person be on "death row". I've been told that every single human being in this world gets PVC's/PAC's occasionally?  I'm wondering if the stress due to mild weight trainning and moderate physical acitivity over the last 15 years or so is a possibe underlying factor? Anyways, It also appears to get worse with time... PS. How old are you and did you actually have a Heart attack? Wouldn't a Echo & EKG confirm that?

Thanks, Alex.