Desperate for help!

[Coleena]

I have been going to doctors for approx. 1 yr. I have had heart cath, Stomach and chest ct scan, endoscopy, gallbadder utrasound,etc. To no advail. My problem is that I started out just having a little discomfort in my mid stomach area and I was having a funny sensation in my chest well I finally figured out that the sensation was actually my heart skipping beats (or early beats as they put it)and rapid pulse. As time has went on I have come to realize that these heart sensation occur more after eating and now I am having a very full feeling in my mid stomach area and a little nausea. I can even be just riding down the road and the vibration from the car will make my stomach move and immediately my heart will skip a beat. I almost feel like my food is not digesting properly and it is swelling my stomach which is pushing on the artery running by my stomach. I am so fustrated cause no one seems to believe that my stomach has anything to do with my heart but I know that this is happening.
I am not a hypocondriact, I know that this is happening and I am real concerned cause I feel it is getting worse. As a matter of fact I am really scared. There are no doctors in my area that have a specialty in this area. All test have revealed no answers.
PLEASE give me some suggestions as to what it could possibly be or research I can do on my own. I have searched the internet and I can not find anything that have digestive and heart related symptoms

[jdlaughead]

A related discussion, Hiatial Hernia was started.

[wjbpolice]

It is so strange to read your issues.  In 2004 I got really dizzy while on patrol (police officer) and then I almost blacked out.  After three months of searching, my cardiologist and gastro doctor gave me the thumbs up.  I returned to patrol and four days later felt a very weird, uncomfortable sensation in my abdomen.  From there I got numb in my arms and legs, my heart began to skip all around and I got really dizzy and weak.  3.5 years later they say I have autonomic insuffiency, and I am on anti-depressants.  Doing better, but only at about 70% of what I was and I can't patrol anymore.  I too have a full feeling all the time and believe I have incomplete digestion...  Help me out

[JackieG]

Yoshi is right about things weakening the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (the "LES"). They also include chocolate, caffiene, alcohol, and mint (peppermint for example). A weakened LES exasperates GERD. Avoiding these foods, eating a low fat diet, losing weight (if one is obese), not eating or drinking anything three hours before going to bed, and sleeping with the head of the bed elevated about six inches, also help manage GERD.

[yoshi]

do you know certain medication weaken the LES??
aspirin is one of them,hormone replacement medication is another.

[Coleena]

Okay - I have no heartburn or any signs of hiatial hernia. My husband had this years ago and he had heartburn extremely bad and he thought he was having heartattack several times. My heart feels like it is skipping which doctor explained it is EARLY BEATS, what is this actually? I can feel in my pulse that my heart stops for a second. I have had people take my pulse and I can feel the sensation in my chest at the exact moment that they feel a so called skipped beat. My stomach JUST RECENTLY started having the bloating feeling (and its not an ulcer cause I had one years ago so I know what that feels like)right below my rib cage opening to right above my belly button. As a matter of fact like just sitting here now my stomach is all protruding (like fatness)at top and it feels like I am putting pressure on from just sitting. What is the medical term for the early beats?

[Coleena]

I do take BC powders, which are aspirin. As bad as I hate to admit I have taken 4 BCs a day, which is the same as 8 aspirin and have taken them for an extremely long time, probably 8 years. But I have slowed down to 1 BC a day which is the same as 2 aspirins. I actually quit for 2 weeks cause I was having a thyoid biopsy and the symtoms continued.

[Med_Writer]

Long-term use of certain kinds of pain killers can cause your symptoms.

Do you take either aspirin, Advil, Aleve, or Motrin?

I haven't read this entire thread so forgive me if this idea has been mentioned already.

-M.W.

[cuprex]

Well
5 odd years of a darting pain that feels like it

[Vegas1]

Thanks for the reply , I have just had so many problems that I kinda get on the offensive so anyway I have my svt's under controll as for the pvc's well depends on what and how mutch I eat like I A thoraxic surgical team is being assembled for a possible recunstruction / repair of the lower esophagus / diaphram that has major damage from vomiting well good luck anyway have a great day

[luckless]

Dear vegas1,
I hope that you did not take offense to my post. It was not intented that way. Supra means above and supraventricular means above the ventrical. So I can see what you are saying. If  PVC's cause enough irritablitiy I supose SVT could result, but they are still two different arrthmias. All arrthymias are caused by the electrical conduction of the heart not the structure. So a person with a normal heart structure can indeed have arrythmias. I was trying to give more clarity to the writer who was feeling skipped beats and/or a rapid pulse.
In the EPS lab the patient is given medicatons to stimulate the electrical conduction of the heart to try to reproduce the symptoms the patient is feeling so that they can figure out what arrthymia the patient is experincing. Somtimes they can even ablate the irritable focus and prevent the arrythmia from reoccuring.

[Vegas1]

"PVC'S CAN AND DO START AN SVT RUN" I had svt's and pvc's and let me tell you this that when the pvc's started BANG there went my svt's But I had an ep study and the heart was perfect hmmm  the md said I would need to take toprol 50 mg's a day for the  rest of my life . Well as soon as I began proton pump inhibitors , everything subsided I am persuing a surgeon with my thoraxic / neuro team to correct the hiatal hernia and diaphramic hernia that has been the culprit of all these other symtoms good luck and have a great day > Ps I have been off the toprol for 5 years !!!

[luckless]

I think that there has been some rude behavior in this forum related to the surgeon who is just trying to give everyone acurate information. For the record SVT and PVC's are not the same arrythmia. PVC's are premature ventricular contractions. SVT is supraventricular tachicardia. With SVT the heart rate is extremely rapid.(greater than 120bpm sometimes close to 200bpm) People suffering from SVT are acutely ill and do not generally convert to a normal rythnm without medical intervention. They often feel like their heart is fluttering not like a (skipped beat)They suffer from nausea/ vomiting and fainting. If untreated their blood pressure is low and they can suffer cardiogentic shock. which is not always the case with PVC's. PVC's become dangerous when they occur frequently, from different areas of irritabily in the heart, or in pairs. Many people have rare PVC's and donot even feel them. PVC's are not perfused and can not be felt in a pulse therefore they themselves do not cause tachycardia, when checking your pulse you would feel a skipped beat. The tachycardia r/t PVC's is called Ventricular tachycardia and does not generate a pulse. It is life threatinging. Many things affect heart conduction including stress, medications, electrolyte imbalances to name a few. Premature Atrial contractions are also responsible for the sensation of skipped beats, They can also cause tachy arrytrhmias. To really find out what is wrong a event monitor is a good idea. Irritation of the vagus nerve is often associated with slow heart rates (bradycardia) and fainting episodes. Which can be caused by extreme stress. I hope this helps.

[Vegas1]

When you get a hiatal hernia , it allows a portion of the stomack to portrude through the hiatus If you look at how close the heart is to the hernia , there is what we call cardiac compression the heart is very sensative to anything that comes in contact with it or even close to it. So PVC'S can be caused by the hernia . And acide refluce that causes swelling and iritation in the esophagus , can cause cardiac symptoms . If i eat to late , I wake up with about 100 bpm about three hours later and all i hafto do , is drink small sips of water and the rate goes down to about 60 bpm . I have this ever since my hiatal hernia Well good luck and have a great weakend .

[TJV]

Posted by CCF CARDIO MD - DLB on July 15, 1999 at 13:21:10Dear Patricia

I agree with your cardiologist. I do not think that your hiatal hernia caused your PVCs. Despite what you might find posted on the internet, there is no proven connection between acid reflux or PVCs - both conditions are common and both are aggravated by stress. Thus both may coexist. The vagus nerve does supply the heart and help regulate the speed of the heart beat. Likewise, this nerve gives of branches that regulate stomach acidity. However, as appealing an explanation as it may seem, the two conditions are not linked.

I hope this has been useful. I wish you the best of luck. Feel free to write back.

[Vegas1]

Dear Dr's.
I had an open Fundoplication in 88' and a thoracic fundoplication in 91'. Since the thoracic surgery I have had what first started as sinus Tach. After taking lopressor, prozac and Xanax my symptoms got better. In 94' I started having PVC's quite regularly and have them to this day on a daily basis. Two Gastroenterologists think this may be caused by scar tissue and adhesions from the surgeries. The PVC's seem to come whenever food or gas gets stuck in my esophagus. After making myself burp, the PVC's alleviate. It has always felt as if my stomach is somehow pulling down on my chest, like the two are connected internally from the adhesions. Do you think this is my problem and that I may benefit from laparascopic surgery to remove the adhesions. All cardiac tests are completely normal. Any insight would be greatly appreciated! Thank you for your time.

Sincerely, Erik

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer Posted By: HFHSM.D.-Gastro-RF on Tuesday, November 09, 1999

Dear Erik,
It is difficult to answer your question. We now see that cardiac arrythmias can be associated with esophageal reflux. Whether another surgery will prevent the cardiac arrythmias is difficult to predict. You should ask this question to the surgeon that you are considering for the operation.

[Vegas1]

Until you have walked in my shoes keep your rude comments to yourself And I have not only lived this, hunderds of people around the world have. I hope that and I am certian that this  problem and life threatening condition in some will and can be managed  Good luck I will continue to help and try and find more info as I continue to do my own research !!!

[TJV]

  That post you posted on  the common acid irritating the vagal fibre theory in GERD  has absolutely nothing to do with your  hiatal hernia syndrome theory what so ever. So you're trading theories?

Was curious , you said quote  "I had life threatening arithmia's and the best heart team in california said "IN THERE REPORT THAT THE PROBLEM IS COMMING FROM AN OUTSIDE SOURCE ".

So what outside source do you suppose these cardiologists thought your problems were coming from?
  
And wasn't your heart deemed normal?

And  you said after 5 years you learned to control symptoms from this self professed life threatening VNI/HHS disorder. So what do you do to finally get your symptoms under control? What was the magic bullet?

[lmroswell]

My husband's complaints to several doctors, including the ones during his trips to the ER, couldn't and wouldn't believe his symptoms as he was explaining them to him, UNTIL, they actually documented it on and EKG.  I have to admit, it was very bizarre.  His recent gastric episodes, minus the cardiac symptoms, have again sent him to his gastro doc, who, remembered him, because his case was so unusual.  My recommendation to you, is that you go to a large academic center, and take with you all your pertinent medical records and start there.  I have no doubt this is affecting your daily quality of life.  We have been there.  There is an answer to your problems...

[Vegas1]

Dear Peter,
Thank you for your most recent contribution to our Forum. We have received many postings describing cardiav arrythmias related to reflux. It is apparent that the problem is more commmon than physicians realize. With regard to your specific questions
1) The vagus nerve regulates swallowing and heart rythm as well as transmits sensory information regarding the esophagus to the brain. INflammation of vagal fibers (as can be seen with esophagitis) may alter the neural tone that controls heart rythm. The specific mechanism would be highly speculative.

2)Bile in the stomach is a frequent finding during endoscopy. Bile can reflux into the esophagus. The role of bile in the genesis of the cardiac arrythmias is unknown.

3) Your liver problems are independent of the cardiac problem.

This information is presented for educational purposes. ASk specific questions to your personal physician.

HFHSM.D.-rf
*keywords: esophageal reflux, cardiac arrthymia
0.2

[Vegas1]

Sally is right that some universities might be a better help , but getting on the internet can definitely help it connects us to each other and can and will lead to more illnesses being solved over time keep up the good work and good health .

[sally1952]

I think the bottom line here is that no matter how much you need or want answers and a diagnosis, you aren't going to find them here.If all these Drs. you have been to and all the tests results haven't found it how in the world could anyone, Dr. or otherwise, in this setting, help you? You say the Drs. in your area aren't familiar with this then why not ask for a referral to one the university type hospitals where their specialty is dealing with and diagnosing the unusual? It would certainly be worth peace of mind to make a trip and get some useful answers. I know that the "vagus nerve" can cause all sorts of problems I have experienced some of them and when it became to much for my local Dr. I was sent for evaluation at one of those university hospitals.
Best of luck,
Sally

[Vegas1]

Let me say that the symtoms are life threatening I had life threatening arithmia's and the best heart team in california said "IN THERE REPORT THAT THE PROBLEM IS COMMING FROM AN OUTSIDE SOURCE . I know from 5 years of hell, how to controll most of these symtoms studies or no studies " MY VEGAS NERVE HAS COME CLOSE TO KILLING ME FROM THE PRESSURE COMMING FROM THE HIATLE HERNIA " In the years to come these fools that think just because they went to college they have all the answers will not be commenting on this disorder VNI/HHS. And thanks for the email coleena I look forward to helping you out best wishes !!!

[Coleena]

Thanks to all of you! I appreciate the input.

[TJV]

Please don't misinterpret me ,