PVCs during Exercise

[clemsonmike]

Hello,

First of all thank you for the advice!  It is very much appreciated.

I am a healthy 25 year old male, with the exception of being treated for hypertension.  I am currently on 25 mg of Atenolol and 10 mg of Enalapril.  My blood pressure is controlled, under 140/90.

My concern is PVCs!!!  They are driving me crazy.  They tend to be cyclical throughout the year.  Sometimes they are really bad, and for the past month they have been.

Last year I had all the cardiac tests done.  Echocardiogram, Stress+Echo, Stress Test and Holter Monitor.  All checked out fine.  The Echocardiogram was done 6 months ago.  I remember the technician for the Echo saying my Left Ventricle Wall Thickness was around 10 or 11 mm; on the upper end of of a "Normal" range Left Ventricle Wall Thickness.

My follow up appointment the cardiologist yielded no concerns.  She felt like I did not need to see a cardiologist anymore.

The thing is I lift HEAVY weights 3 times a week.  Squats, Deadlifts, Bench Press....... For 5 sets of 5 reps as heavy as I can possibly lift.  Lifting is very important to me.  It is a great stress reliever for me, and I enjoy the results I see.  I swear it has lowered my resting blood pressure.  I also run 3 miles 3 times a week.  All the doctors I have seen see no issue with me lifting weights.  I never hold my breath (valsalva maneuver) when lifting.

For the most part I have PVCs with exertion - running or walking around after sitting at my desk at work for an hour or so.  Do you think the heavy weight lifting could have caused me to have left ventricle hypertrophy since I had the Echo 6 months ago?  Are the PVCs with exercise/exertion a signal of this?  I went to the cardiologist office last week and saw a nurse's practitioner.  She did a resting ECG and checked my blood pressure.  All were fine.  She did not seem concerned.  Should I have another Echo to make sure I do not have LVH?

I am hopeing this is just anxiety and I do not have a structural heart issue.

Thank you,

Mike

[is_something_wrong]

Hi Mike!

5-10 PACs or PVCs when you run for 30 minutes is nothing! :) Can easily be a result of some excess adrenaline. If you are worried, it may be a good idea to do a stress test, to see if they are PVCs or PACs, what's causing them, etc. It would be worrisome if you had a PVC every third beat or so. You don't :)

[clemsonmike]

Thanks for the post!

Hypertension runs in my family.  Everyone has it.  My Father and Grandfather both had it in their 20s.

I'm pretty sure they are PVCs.  It's a flip-flop/skipped beat feeling.  I tend to get anywhere from 5-10 when I run for 30 minutes.

Reassuring information on the 13-14 mm wall thickness.  Lets hope I never get there!

Anxiety tends to precipitate the PVCs.  Thinking back over the past year or two having them, they tend to surface during periods of high stress.

-Mike

[is_something_wrong]

Hi! At 10-11 mm you don't have LVH. My wall thickness is also 10-11. Remember, there should be differences between men that's lifting weights and for example an untrained female.

But what's causing the hypertension? That's highly uncommon in healthy men that exercise. Are you sure this is your real blood pressure? Yould it be that you are nervous when measuring?

I don't know why you get PVCs during exercise. Are you sure they are PVCs? PVCs usually go away with exercise, but anxiety during exercise can really provoke them. Been there, though I had PACs.

My cardiologist told me that young fit men could have wall thickness up to 13-14 mm before he defined it as hypertrophy.