Possble Blockage?

[MDAVEY]

Hello, I am 44 Male. I keep having skips when I do yard work. I was diagnosed for MVP maybe 8 years ago and have had problems here and there. My 1st Cardio Dr was a quack, he was always on his cell phone when he was in the room. Anyway I switched Dr's about a year ago and he made me do all the tests over again, Echo came back normal, stress test/treadmill with echo right after also came back normal. Same with the 24 hr halter monitor, then I did a long term event monitor and they said I had PVC's and they were not to be worried about (I was having like 10 a minute then) I looked at his paperwork when I was there for my last visit, it said everything was normal and echo shows very mild thickening of my posterior leaflet of my Mitral Valve and couldn't really find any structural heart disease. Also he wrote he wasn't even sure he would define it as prolapse.

OK so I felt a little better after that, but here is my question; I walk about a mile and a half on the treadmill daily. My heart rate usually gets like 115-125 and I usually never have skips however when I do yard work like weed eating or trimming hedges my heart rate goes to like 135-140 and then the skips start. Even if I grab a bag of groceries to take them in the house I get skips here and there. Does this sound like blockage they missed or am I just out of shape? I am 5" 10" and about 194 so I am a few pounds overweight. I can walk fast on the treadmill for a longtime and never have a skip. What gives/ Any help would be awesome!

Also I wanted to add, if I eat just about anything especially sweets my heart goes much faster than usual after I eat. Also I was told I have a fatty liver a few years ago, since my blood work showed elevated liver enzymes.


This discussion is related to how to live with heart skips.

[itdood]

I am a Male, 42, PVC sufferer.  I've been through every test it seems, so far normal...What you are describing doesn't sound like angina to me but it wouldn't hurt to get a nuke stress test, or even better, a cardiac MRI to be sure.

[MDAVEY]

Thanks for the post, I guess that's what I am really wondering is I know I would probably have pain if there were blockages, or can it be just skips? If so though I don't usually get them when I am on the treadmill and my heart rate is up. I think my heart rate got to like 168 during stress test and I don't remember any skips.

[Gene918]

I too, have been experiencing pvc's while doing yard work, nothing all that strenuous, mowing grass, etc. They sure are annoying when you're trying to get things done. Wish I had an answer for you, I'm searching for one, too!

[itdood]

You wouldn't necessarily have pain with blockages or stenosis.  PVCs alone do not necessarily mean stenosis.    I'm sorry but I can't give you the answer you are looking for here.  A cardiac MRI with 3-d turbo field can usually determine any stenosis, or a catheterization.  These would be indicated if you presented with angina which you do not seem to have.

There was a recent study done to suggest that recovery PVCs (PVCs as your heart is slowing down from exercise) had a higher prevalence of stenosis than other PVCs such as exercise induced.  Since your PVCs seem to be exercise induced, that would put you in the better category.  But, I'm just an anonymous guy guessing on an Internet blog.   If you are still concerned tell your doc this and seek more tests to be sure.  better safe than sorry.