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Hyerthyroidism and the Heart

I previously was Graves hyperthryroid with an undetectable TSH, less than 0.004.  T4 elevated at 25.0.  Free T4 7.06.  Heart rate was 140 "at rest" and slowly decreased over a period of months after administration of antithyroid medication.  Was still hyperthyroid for a year after first taking antithryoid medication.  Now TSH etc. are within normal range.  Have had heart symptoms/problems since that time which never experienced prior to hyperthyroidism.  Symptoms include left side chest discomfort, noises and pain in throat -- all of which are fine with medication.  Was diagnosed with heart failure and dilated cardiomyopathy and have a LBBB.  My question is what is the actual strain on the heart while hyperthyroid to this degree with tachycardia?  Thank you very much.
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Avatar universal
I had an overdose of thyroid medication in August of 2007, I was suppose to be taking 12.5 mcg and the doctor gave me 125mcg  at the time I weighed 109 pounds, I started losing weight, not sleeping, heart racing, I had a history of heart failure three years prior but recovered fully and just had an echo done three weeks before starting this thyoid pill, plus I was on this thyroid pill three years before on 50mcg I had tachycardia and they took me off and promised never to put me on a dose that high again, hence the 125mcg for my weight? Well I developed tachycardia, anxiety, tremors, diarrea, vomiting, paranoya, meomory loss from the anxietyu medication, well in 5 weeks I thought I had a stroke but I didn't my heart rate would go anywhere from 90- 206 everyday, the left side of my body went numb and my right eye ball would stick in place, I cried many times a day and couldn't sleep at all, ok in 5 weeks my TSH went from 11.9 to 0. They finally figured it out after I asked if teh 12.2mcg wasn't enough, I though I was taking 12.5 but didn't know because the bottle read .0125mg, I had no clue how to compute that, so all winter I experienced tachycardia and three weeks into finding the overdose I had a Left Bundle Branch Block show up, I had never had this before- I was recovered from pregnancy related heart failure called Peripartum Cardiomyopathy, and was weaned off toprol- I was proud- then this happened and in January I had heart failure that was tachycardia induced- I was started on Digoxin, still taking toprol from the fall and anxiety meds, I had a stress test MRI with Adenosine which stopped my heart for over a minute, everyone freaked out, apparently the LBBB caused that? Well after the adenosine almost killed me I started feeling better- I think that it help treat the heart failure- they use it on elderly people with heart failure as a muscle strenghtener. My ejection fraction went from 44 to 65 this year. I ma still on medications and still have the LBBB- only it is intermittent- shows up on echo's but not always on ekg's. The pharmacist never checked the dose or even came to the window that day, he was my neighbor and didn't like us because of our dog, long story.... Anyways, I was in and out of the hospital so much that my kids are all messed up and my husband left his job to take care of me and the kids, he now has major depression issues from not having a job- we are losing our house and our vehicles. I have anxiety over triggered things that have happened, so many nights I cried thinking I was going to die, my doctor that caught the mistake was not the doctor that overdosed me, but at one point he was taking atery labs every couple days to make sure I wasn't going to have a stroke or heart attack and at one point I asked, "I am not going to die an I?" and he Dr. K said " I don't know", I lived in my bedroom for 4 months with my pills and a blood pressure cuff, my kids cried to go to school because they didn't want to come home and find me dead, they had waited int he waiting rooms in the ER many nights to early in the morning and got ont he bus and went to school with no sleep, they were 3,5 and 9 at the time, the 5 year old was in kindergarden and had to have a councelor because he would scream and cry as soon as he woke up, he didn't want to go to school and leave me, he still has night tremors and in January and March of 2008 I got the stomach flu and ended up hospitalized because my heart rate was too high and my electrolytes were way off, I was dehydrated and it took 13 bags of IV fluid to go to the bathroom again, In March I needed oxygen because everything was shutting down, I couldn't see anyone and felt that if I exhaled I could die and I was actually ok with that, I hurt so bad, and I couldn't breath, well I was scaired when I had the first heart failure but that was not as bad as this thyroid storm induced heart failure, now I still have a LBBB and that is permanent that may require a pacemaker,I had a bad arrythmia show up during the overdose, but only have the sinus node tachycardia rhythms now, that they can catch in the office that is. My mind has been broken and my family has been damaged forever, my husband and I are barely holding it together as husband and wife, and this has killed our happiness. Oh from August 2007 when I weighed 109 to March 2008 I went to 92 pounds. I have eaten a lot and finally now in Jan 2009 I weigh 105, but I need to gain more. People think it is a blessing to have to gain weight, I think it is a curse, peopple don't know what it is like to feel and look so sick, I was made fun of so many times by people to eat a cheeseburger. Even a girl working at Sam's Club told me to eat a cheeseburger and I told her I had heart failure, then she had the nerve to say "well if you would eat something maybe you wouldn't of had heart failure". Then there is my neighbor the pharmacist, he could have prevented this, but he harassed us the whole time I was being overdosed, he and his wife would call the cops on our dog getting out and running lose, we live int he country, but they would also blame dog poop int heir yard on our dog, we have over 30 coyotes in our yards everynight, well we finally got rid of our dogs, and got our kids a goat, the other neighbor has dogs that got lose and barked all day the the pharmiacists saw it and heard it and wouldn't call the police, then one day they watched the neighbor dog attack my husband and killed our kids baby goat in our back yard, our kids watched while screaming and crying, the police came and the dog catcher came, and that pharmacists wife stood int he window the whole time watching- not helping- and didn't call the police or see if my husband was ok, that dog was tied up for 8 years and had just moved to the sub-division 1 year prior, never been loose but would growel at us, it killed our goat, chased my son into the house, attacked my husband and the police came and wouldn't even come near the dog until animal control arrived, and that neighbor just watched thru her window. The point is I feel that he didn't come to the window that day that I got my prescription filled because he didn't like us, he hated us, he told the new neighbors to stay away from us, that we were evil becuase my husband drank beer outside while building our garage. We don't have good luck but I call it only if I know it is true, and I have researched enough facts to know my story, and I am here for a reason, to stop people from believing they are taking the right meds, double check everything, and don't always trust doctors, get a second opinion, know your body, it could save your life. When I had the Peripartum Cardiomyopathy the same hospital that overdosed me, sent me home with paper bags, and labeled me with anxiety, I was having heart failure and I had to be very very persisitant to get it diagnosed. I saw way to many doctors and had way to many labs drawn, my veins hurt, I had so many bruises up and down me in the past 5 years, I can't believe I am still here, but I want people to know, that I am still here, and I want people to learn from this story. Life is about how many lives you touch and how many lives touch you. Health and happiness are life's real treaures.
Helpful - 0
213044 tn?1236527460
There is a heart disease forum listed under H, but I understand what you are saying. Maybe you could try asking in both forums and see if you can get two opinions?

As for my Endocrinologist, she is adept and skilled, I am sure, but she has too many patients. I have literally been lost in her crowd. I need to call her nurse/aid and see if my last few ER visits and the last hospital stay are in my records.

I am sort of starting over with her because she is head of a six doctor clinic, and it is the only Endo clinic within a hundred mile of me. So I am giving her another chance and she is giving me another chance. LOL!

We've both made a few mistakes. :)
You can read my journal if you want to get bored.

I plan to talk to my GP as well soon.
I trust him completely.

I will also be getting a complete copy of my records for the last three years.

Good luck finding the answer to your questions.
Let me know what you here. I am very interested.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Unfortunately, it appears that there isn't a forum to ask a Cardiologist.  In my own experience the Cardiologist depended on the Endocrinologist for oversight and decision making.  So either way, it's still good to find an Endocrinologist who is sensitive to heart issues an pays attention to a patient's symptoms etc.to know the importance of a referral to a Cardiologist.  I'll continue to try to post question to Thyroid M.D.  Haven't been able to get through.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Yes, the person who told you to get "all" of your records is correct.  You will have a better understanding of the situation yourself if you do this.  I have found it's best to have a copy yourself and read over the contents vs. simply having one doctor/hospital forward to another.  You are your own best advocate.  Also, as you end up switching doctors it's easier to make copies of tests that you will take to each visit.  There is a huge, huge problem with too many Endocrinologists not seeing the relationship between thyroid and cardiac problems.  This is dangerous.  And, it's not much better with Cardiologists.  I guess it's easier for specialists to believe that they focus on their specialty and ignore everything else.  This is extremely dangerous, and Endocrinologists should not be claiming to be thyroid experts when they don't have a basic understanding of the effects on the body.  It clearly sounds to me as though you need a new Endocrinologist. Thanks for your help!
Helpful - 0
213044 tn?1236527460
You're right. I shouldn't wait.

Another member here talked me into getting ALL my records from my PCP, and the heart tests will all be in there, as well as the emergency room visits and hospital stays.

I can look it over and go have an educated talk with a Cardiologist and have some more tests run. My PCP has had me off work since October and has told me about five times I am not going back to work for at least a year.

My Endo is saying the same thing, but she doesn't have a clue that I have a serious heart issue. She barely understands my thyroid issue.

The problem there is the two hospitals are not communicating 100%. She doesn't have any records of my ER visits, Hospital stay, or heart tests.

My PCP doesn't have any of the records of the tests my Endo has run. He's run plenty  of his own, but he has not seen any of the results of tests she has run.

That's all my fault, I suppose. I should be telling eveybody to fax each other all test results.

Anyway, try the doctor's forums as well. it's the lower section of forums on that page.

Your welcome here, but it sounds like you want to ask a Cardiologist a question right now.

Good luck.
Post back what you find out.
I'm interested.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Thank you very much for telling me about your experience which I believe we all need to share.  Apparently, there is a serious problem.  Your experience is incredibly similar to mine.  It sounds as though you have experienced heart failure due to the hyperthyroidism.  That is precisely what happened to me when I was hospitalized.  I, too, was never told my complete diagnosis and was discharged from the hospital in high output heart failure and noone ever told me!  They simply gave me the diagnosis of hyperthyroidism.  A 2D Echo was ordered and they never gave me the results which showed that I had a poorly functioning heart with a low ejection fraction.  You absolutely must see a Cardiologist!  Don't wait until your TSH is normal!  You need to know what is going on now and make them explain it to you.  I don't know what the problem is, however, I plan to get to the bottom of it.  We're all being ignored!  And, I don't know what the reason for it is.  Since your hyperthyroid state was so severe and the doctor made the comments to you regarding your heart, you must see a Cardiologist.  Don't wait for them to quide you!  If I've learned anything, it's that they don't tell us much -- they keep us in the dark until it's too late.  Become proactive.  I will get to the bottom of the problem to find out why we're being ignored.  Thank you for the information on how to post a question which I plan to do.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Thank you very much for telling me about your experience which I believe we all need to share.  Apparently, there is a serious problem.  Your experience is incredibly similar to mine.  It sounds as though you have experienced heart failure due to the hyperthyroidism.  That is precisely what happened to me when I was hospitalized.  I, too, was never told my complete diagnosis and was discharged from the hospital in high output heart failure and noone ever told me!  They simply gave me the diagnosis of hyperthyroidism.  A 2D Echo was ordered and they never gave me the results which showed that I had a poorly functioning heart with a low ejection fraction.  You absolutely must see a Cardiologist!  Don't wait until your TSH is normal!  You need to know what is going on now and make them explain it to you.  I don't know what the problem is, however, I plan to get to the bottom of it.  We're all being ignored!  And, I don't know what the reason for it is.  Since your hyperthyroid state was so severe and the doctor made the comments to you regarding your heart, you must see a Cardiologist.  Don't wait for them to quide you!  If I've learned anything, it's that they don't tell us much -- they keep us in the dark until it's too late.  Become proactive.  I will get to the bottom of the problem to find out why we're being ignored.  Thank you for the information on how to post a question which I plan to do.
Helpful - 0
213044 tn?1236527460
I cannot answer your question from a doctors standpoint or understand half the terms you have used, for that matter.

I can tell yo a bit of my own experience, if that will help.

My heart was in fine condition three years ago. I had all sorts of tests run telling me so.

I spent parts of the last two years in a Hyper phase, sometimes quite severely Hyper.

At one point I experienced muscle wasting, a condition that led to me losing 25 pounds (from 145 to 120) of muscle in a week, during which time I was confined to bed most of the time and eating twice as much as I normally would eat. I was literally eating constantly, and the weight fell off of me.

I now have heart problems that have not been explained fully. My health has been such that my doctors feel a Cardiologist can wait till later.

I've been on Toprol XL for a year and a half to control Tachacardia, and I am unable to work at this time.

The last time I was discharged from a hospital, the doctor releasing me explained in layman's terms that my heart could neither contract nor relax fully, thus it was not pumping eficiently, and was under a constant strain trying to circulate the blood. He sent me home with no diagnosis or recommendation other than to try and get my thyroid under control as soon as possible.

So I don't even understand my own condition, let alone yours.

I can tell you that prolonged periods of Hyperthyroidism can put an enormous strain on your heart, but you already know that.

I have been hypothyroid now for a while, but the heart symptoms persist. My PCP will not say whether my heart will get stronger again or not. I am waiting to get my TSH stabilized before seeing a Cardiologist.

I've seen so many doctors I am not in a big hurry to see another Cardiologist anyway.

If you want to ask a doctor on this board about your heart, there is another forum you can post to.

To do that, go to the top of the page and click where it says "forums". That will take you to a page where there are lists of boards.

One section is "patient to patient" forums, and one section is "patient to doctor" forums.

You can pick the forum you feel is most apropriate, or pick more than one, and ask your question directly to a doctor. The forums the doctors participate on limit the number of new questions a day, so you may have to try a few times to get your question listed, but a doctor will answer you sooner or later once you ask your questions.

In the meantime, someone may be able to answer your questions here. I would keep checking here, and try posting to one of the forums that a doctor participates on.

Hope this is of some help to you.
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