skipped heart beats

Hi im 23 years old,male,and have never had any previous health problems.About 2 months ago i started to get some skipped heart beats that feel like it skips then it flutters immediately after,This is also around the time that ive started to notice that my breathing is labored.My breathing is very weird its almost like a slight heaviness in my chest all day long.Ive had a couple ekgs since then and the doctors said i was fine,they checked my breathing but just with a stethoscope.Anyway about a week ago i started to feel a different kind of skipped beat,this time without the flutter.Im 100 percent sure that its doing it.It usually does it when im in bed and about to go to sleep.It feels like,lubdub,lubdub,lubdub,pause,lubdub,lubdub.Theres no flutter like the other skipped beats.Last night i felt it pause about 6 times per minute for about 15-20 min.Does anyone know whats wrong with my breathing and my heart? I just went 4 days ago to put on a holter monitor for 24 hrs,im worried that it didnt detect it.

[erijon]

What you are describing sounds like common PVCs. They are not actually skipped beats but early beats. There are multiple routes for the heart to send an electrical signal to the ventricle to beat. What you are experiencing is what happens when the signal is fired early, this causes the pause you feel between beats. Because there was more time for the heart to fill due to the pause, the next beat can feel more forceful and be noticeable.

I would bet that a 24 hour holter will have caught these and they will be harmless. In people with a normal EKG and normal heart structure as seen on an echo, these are almost always harmless. Your breathing issues may just be due to anxiety over the PVCs, if not you'll need to ask your doctor his opinion and perhaps get a referral to a specialist.

Hope this helps,

Jon

[erijon]

What you are describing sounds like common PVCs. They are not actually skipped beats but early beats. There are multiple routes for the heart to send an electrical signal to the ventricle to beat. What you are experiencing is what happens when the signal is fired early, this causes the pause you feel between beats. Because there was more time for the heart to fill due to the pause, the next beat can feel more forceful and be noticeable.

I would bet that a 24 hour holter will have caught these and they will be harmless. In people with a normal EKG and normal heart structure as seen on an echo, these are almost always harmless. Your breathing issues may just be due to anxiety over the PVCs, if not you'll need to ask your doctor his opinion and perhaps get a referral to a specialist.

Hope this helps,

Jon

[islandgrl47]

Hi, I experienced the exact symptoms 20 years ago and I'm glad the mechanics of the "pause" has finally been explained. I did get relief with my breathing with thoracic chiropractic adjustments.

[va287]

Even if there was no hard beat afterwards,just the pause.

[erijon]

Yes, even if there was just a pause.