Arrhythmias

[Dubu]

I am a 63 yr old female that just started getting skipped heart beats about two months ago.  When I called cardiology, the nurse told me the caffiene in my ice tea could be causing it. I was drinking about 44 oz of tea a day. She said I am on atenolol and a baby aspirin a day so I should be fine if I stop drinking caffiene.  Should I be concerned???

[skippedbeats]

You sound like me. Started having skipped beats last fall, I am 59 yr old female.  Dr. did some blood work in January and told me to just increase potassium by drinking glass of orange juice and having a banana every day. That worked for about 2 1/2 months, but noticed the past couple of weeks that I am having them again, however,now maybe 1 to 3 times per day,and sometimes I go all day without any, I can tell when it happens because I get a momentary feeling of lightheadedness, not dizzy just a very quick feeling of being lightheaded. But when I check my pulse it is doing fine,not like before when the skipped beats would last for hours on end.  My dr. told me back in the fall that stress could be a factor, and that these things are usually benign.  But he has yet to do an ekg, or stress test.  Said he would wait since I am uninsured,which means I would need to make payments if a test was expensive.  Dr. wanted me to follow up in March or April with him, but of course I put it off since I was feeling really good, but guess I will have to make that appointment.

[MichelleP_3811]

In general in a healthy heart skipping beats if they are pacs or pvcs are of no concern.  It is believed that most people get them to a small degree but most people don't feel them.  Adrenaline, caffieine, stomach issues, and stress are the biggest triggers.  Unless you are having somewhere around 20,000 a day or are experiencing shortness of breath, dizziness or passing out from them they are considered a benign situation.  That said, if this is new for you and you haven't had your heart evaluated recently you can ask to have an echo done to check that your heart is still sound and also get a monitor to see how many you are having.  Beta blockers are the first line of defense to help them though for some they don't work but in general the medical community does not see them as a health issue.  That said, if you are concerned about them and question the health of your heart it is best to get evaluated by a cardiologist just to make sure all is still good with your heart. Though you are likely fine a doctor really is the only one who can say for sure your health is in the clear.  Take care and keep us posted on how you are doing.