VAGUS NERVE and STOMACH or HEART LURCHES (spasms)

[petestrand]

I'm a sixtish male with a history of mitral prolapse/systolic functional murmur, PVCs and PACs. I take very low dose Atenolol. I was told that I have mild acid reflux, but decided to restrict diet rather than take a prescription for that.

I often get what I call "lurches" that seem to be centered in the area of my diaphraghm. These lurches (spasms?) seem to correspond to the old phrase "my heart leaped into my throat." When they were first noticed about 25-30 years ago they were closely correlated with eating spicy food, but were quite infrequent.  Over the years they have varied in frequency of occurence, from a good many days with none, to several a day, to several an hour, to one every few minutes. (Generally, more often as I aged.) About 18 years ago I had them more or less continuously for about 4 hours. A Holter monitor test about that time indicated PVCs and PACs, but no treatment other than the minimum dose Atenolol, and I have never had activity/exercise restrictions.

I have long been convinced that most, if not almost all, of the lurches are STOMACH SPASMS. Doctors have seemed very sceptical of that, insisting they were irregular heart beats. This week I had left arm pain that occurred while having fairly frequent lurches. In the emergency room, bloodwork and EKGs were normal. The doctor (an internist) indicated that the left arm pain might have come from a nerve problem in my neck, and when discussing my "stomach spasms as cause" theory said that the vagus nerve could possibly transfer stomach spasms to the heart.

What is the possibility that my theory is at least somewhat accurate? I would worry a lot less about stomach lurches than if the lurches were from a heart problem!! I have asked several doctors if I could try having my heart monitored aftr eating known "too spicy" foods such as mustard or hot sauce, but got no agreement.

Could the stomach/vagus nerve be a significant source of the lurches? If so, could the lurches  be mistaken for irregular heartbeats? Or, would they almost always/always trigger irregular heartbeats? If the irregular beats are triggered by stomach/vagus, does that mean less cause for anxiety than if they  originate solely in the heart itself? I'd greatly appreciate any information/suggestions/referrals to other info sources, etc. Thanks.  Pete

[Boltz]

Boltz
Hi-I have had the irregular heartbeat bloating -gas burping for at least 35 years.I also had severe diarhea
on and off all this time.Ihave had two ablations for rapid heatbeat after medication failed to correct this problem.Unfortunately this worked but left me where i was before -a very slow heartbeat (50-60 BPM).
Prior to the rapid heart beat problem i tried acupuncture for the irregular heartbeat and bloating etc.It acutually worked and whenever it returned i would go back for another treatment.(it worked for a long time
5-8 months at a clip)The acupuncturist advised me the vagus nerve was in fact the culprit for most if not all the above problems.(also some foods would trigger the stomach problems which in turn would trigger vagal nerve agitation etc)For whatever reason acupuncture did not work on the rapid HB.I have been taking a product call Sun Chorella and as a result I have normal bowel movements ,This product is fantastic and I very rarely get the diarhea anymore.I still get the night gas and irregular heartbeat on ocassion and am going to go back to acupuncture for that .glad i found this forum
Boltz

[Tennis40]

I can't tell you how happy I am to have found other people with the same kind of symptoms.  I have sufferd for more than 20 years with recently at 59 having some of the worst attacks I have ever had.  Irregular heart beats, that feel like my diaphram is going to blow out of my chest.  I burp, have bloating, run to the bathroom etc.  Been through a battery of tests with the Cardio Dr. Treadmill, dye in the arm, pictures of the heart valves.
Nothing harmful they say "then why do I feel like ****.  Very healthy thin lady, active, eat well balanced diet.  Intolerance to milk products, sugar.
I have read your comments about the vagas nerve. .  VERY INTERESTING CONCEPT. I almost feel vindicated from the Doctors thinking I'm crazy.  I do take antidpressants, Lexapro, Wellbrutrin, but Cardio Dr. says no they don't affect my irregular heart beats.  I have fast runs to 169 sometimes lasting on and off for several hours.  Lots of indigestion. I feel like there is a golf ball in my diaphram. Right between my boobs. Sorry, I need to describe the place. My mother suffered from this and the doctors just said, oh! she's a nut case.  I have tried to get Librax for spasams.  Will see my internist on Monday and I am going to take this web page with me.  My digestive track is all screwed up and getting worse with age. I have lost weight.  Nothing sounds good.  If I eat a good meal, like tonight.  Filet Mignon I will be in the bathroom first thing in the AM.  Almost like an emergency.  My urge to go to the bathroom comes on so fast with lots of bloating and gas.  Everything goes right through me.  Then nothing for several days.  I have to force myself to eat.

What medications have some of you taken to lesson the spasms in the upper GI track.  Thanks to all of you I know I'm not crazy and I feel informed and armed with knowledge to share with my internist. By the way my holter monitor test, showed positive for many severe fast and irregular heart beats.Valves normal, doctors can't explain it. They suggest doing an ablation, which is shocking the heart back into sinus rhythum.  No one ever mentioned the Vagas Nerve.  
I will post follow-up with my internist on Monday.  

[tuff case]

I havve been reading all of your comments and I have had many of your symptoms and then some.  I am a diabetic and over the last 2 1/2 years have suffered from nausea, vertigo, dizzy/lightheaded spells, abdominal pain, lurches, numbness and tingling in arms, eletrical shock type feelings, the feeling in my face that it was burning, difficulty with sweating in my extremities, however in the torso and up excessive sweating, difficulty emptying my bladder, or leakage from the bladder as I did not empty it completely.  I have been seeing a GI, Cardio, and neurologist.  Last May I told them I thought it was Diabetic Autonomic neuropathy. Went to Mayo Clinic to evaulate for this.  Mayo told my I had it but that the nausea and the dizzy spell I had were not being caused by the Autonomic Neuropathy.  They were able to determine by my leak of sweating in my lower extermeties.  It ws not until this year when I started vomitting and not being able to stand for more than 5 minutes at a time that the Dr. finally took my bp and pulse while laying, sitting and standing.  Needless to say my bp went from 138/80 to 100/? and my pulse went from in the upper 70's to 162.  He was know able to conclude that I did have the Autonomic Neuropathy and started me on mestonin which has help.

I tell you all this because the Autonomic Neuropathy is linked to the Vegas nerve.  Diabetes is not the only condition linked to Autonomic neuropathy, autoimmune disorders are also linked.

If anyone would like more information regarding these conditions you can search online or you can let me know and we can communicate of via email

thanks,

amelia

[Kathy-J]

I totally understand.. I'm on your side.. same symptoms, same frustrations.
First of all a question. Were any of you checked for leaky heart valves? (I have Mitral Valve and Tricuspid leaks) Only a doppler-pulse will tell. The doppler-flow might miss the leaks but the "pulse" one will catch it. I also have a partial bundle branch block. I think all these things are related.
From reading your posts, I also avoid some of the meds like Protonix, Prevacid, etc., these have hormones in them.  If you read the side-effects you'll wonder why these things are on the market. I would say stay away from all of these drugs.
One thing I've also learned is that if you cough when having the palpitations it helps to put the heart rate back into a normal rhythm. My cardiologist also told me of a spot on the side of the neck near the carotid artery that if you push on it, it can slow the heart down momentarily.
As to the gastro issues, the older we get (I'm a 54 year old female) the less acid is in our stomach.  So by taking these acid-blockers it causes major side effects.
Another question. Has anyone been given the antibiotic Tequin? I had horrible reactions after taking it for two months.  I started having arhythmias and other severe adverse reactions to it.
Can I share a small warning about going to a chiropractor due to pain in the arm. My friend Willy was misdiagnosed by his primary doctor when he complaned of pain in the chest and arm. The doc knew Willy had asthma and sinus problems.. and something wrong with his heart. The chiropractor pushed on his chest, Willy suffered a heart attack, and eventually died. I'm not necessarily against chiropractors, I just have a little caution about using them as a cure-all.
Last question: Have any of you had any recent procedures where anesthesia was used? I'm really interested in your response because I think in my case the anesthesia is linked to my recent attacks.
Thanks.

[tracy66]

Since reading everyones posts here it seems that doctors don`t really have a clue what they are treating .

I decided today to "go chinese"
I had a consultation with a chinese doctor today and he gave me my first session of acupuncture ( he recommends 20 sessions total ) and some herbal tea which he promises will taste foul:-(
  I went in with an uncomfortable feeling in my chest but that has gone now . I will keep everyone posted .

Gerda , how did you get on with your acupuncture ? Did they recommend follow up treatments ?

Queen Spasm , How is the apple cider going ?

The chinese doc said that drugs "poison" the body , we need to treat the whole body instead of individual symptoms.

Good Luck everyone
  tracy x

[NJ in TO]

I am glad I came across this forum. I have finally found parallels to my symptoms. What is going on? I have met at least three other people who have the same symptoms, with about the same time of onset, which are going on undiagnosed. Starts with bloating and stomach pain and over a month it proceeds to chills, nausea and dizzyness. I also get burning of my face and upper body. All tests seem normal, I had this for three monts and had abdominal ultrasound - pancreas and gall bladder sizes normal, no stones. Amylase test is normal. Then I had GI Cat scan, no finding. I'm still so sick! I am too dizzy to drive aroung, I have lost 15 pounds (from 125 to 110) and I don't think I can loose more. No diarrhea, though, only once in a while. Stool culture negative. The ER send me home a month ago because the blood tests didn't show anything really abnormal (that's Canadian healthcare for you).
These days the stomach pain is less, I'm on Librax for the GI, but the nausea and the flushing in my face and burning of skin on upper side of my arms and back across my shoulders, chills and extreme weakness is really worrying me and is getting worse. I look at my little 2 year old and wonder if I'll be here for her. Things just seem to be getting worse from day to day. Some days I get a bit of a break and feel almost normal, just to get a lot worse the next day or next few hours. The periods of feeling better are further in between. I feel quite hopeless and scared. What to do?