Heart rate 30

[JuneEH]

We jus t learned our son in law, age 50, has a heart rate of 50.  Please send me any information on this.

[JuneEH]

Hi again,  Appreciate hearing from you.  We just returned from an extended vacation on Tuesday.  The call came last evening after many messages from us.  We have no idea how this was discovered and hope to learn more tonight after Mark sees a doctor.  We have no idea if he has lost consciousness.  Amazing what you don't learn!  The monitor was mentioned and I hope they go ahead with a good plan.

Having their first child (invitro) late in life was indeed difficult.  Alisa had to have bed rest to prevent a miscarriage.  It was more serious with the second boy born.  She spent six weeks in a Maternity Hospital.  I am giving you a very brief summary here.  It was far worse.  Sleep?  I don't think either of them have had a full night's rest in the past 4 1/2 years. The blessing is that they are both wonderful boys and we are delighted to finally be grandparents!  But, oh my, I am glad I had my children in my 20's.  Young, but still exhausted!

[Wisconsin2007]

Hi June,

Having kids later in life can certainly throw a wrench into daily life.  We had our first when I was 36 and even that was not the easiest - your sleep schedule is decimated, your priorities undergo a complete overhaul - it can be tough.

Though this isn't exactly the same, it might also help to shed some light - when my father was 41 he was in the best shape of his life.  He was running a marathon a year.  He'd suffered a head injury while we were on vacation in '85, and while he was recovering in the ICU, the nurses kept waking him up when he resting because they said they "wanted to make sure he wasn't dead."  His heart rate was regularly around 40, and relative to the elderly folks being monitored in the ICU with him, his heart rate was less than half of everyone else's.

Now if your son has been really fit for most of his life, as I understand it that can have an even greater impact on heart rate - as he ages it can slow even more.

So if he isn't losing consciousness and isn't having this really slow rate at inappropriate times (like during exercise), it's probably not immediately dangerous.  Getting a Holter monitor for 24 or 48 hours, to see how low his heart rate goes during sleep will be a good piece of data for the doctors to have.  But don't worry yet, because it doesn't seem that there's anything to worry about at this point.

How was the slow heart rate discovered?

[NTB]

here's a similar story, though not quite as low. At the bottom are the possible pathologies, but they wouldn't seem to apply in any of these cases of "fit and slim" types.

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Heart-Disease/Is-TOO-healthy-really-a-problem/show/929188

[JuneEH]

Yes, Mark is a runner.  Slim and fit.

June

[JuneEH]

I am not sure you received my last message, but I want to thank you for reassuring us that Mark is not in extreme danger from the low heart rate.  He will see a cardiologist today and I hope all will go well.

June

[severepain]

Was your son n law a runner by chance?  My husband is 49 and he was a marathon runner in college, and his heart rate is 30 a lot of the times.  The doctor says it is because his heart is so healthy.  My husband did where a heart monitor overnight and his heart rate went down to 29!  I just couldn't believe it!  Hope that information helps!

Karen

[JuneEH]

My computer keyboard is sticking and I noted a number of errors which confused the issue of a low heart rate of 30.  Mark is 56, his wife, 45.  Since their decision to have children five years ago, their stress has been incredible, not only home but in his office.

They are searching for a cardiologist and hopefully, they will find one today.  Their planned vacation in a remote area of Maine should be put off.  No phone, no way to communicate would be too dangerous.

Thank you for responding.  We appreciate it very much.  Again, sorry about the mistakes written before, spelling and otherwise.

June

[Wisconsin2007]

Lance Armstrong, currently competing at the Tour de France, has a resting heart rate of around 32.

You said he had kids in his late 50's - so is he 60 now or 50?  

Either way, a heart rate that low should probably get a once-over by a doctor.  Stress can make the heart rate go up, but it can also make it go down.  Having a doctor take a look to rule out anything dangerous is always going to be a good idea.

Good luck!

[JuneEH]

I typed incorrectly.  His heart is 30.  To look at him, he is looks extremely healthy, runs every day.  However, his life has been under a tremendous stress in reconet years.  They elected to have children when in the wife was in her 40s and he in is late 50s.  Very difficult pg's with two boys.  She as hospitalized for six weeks when the second child was in danger. Other complications also.  Apreciate your comments.  Thank you.

June Harding
***@****

[Wisconsin2007]

50 or 30?

50 is probably nothing to worry about if that's his resting heart rate.  If his resting heart rate is 30, either he's a slightly over the hill elite athlete, or his heart rate is too low.  Unfortunately, unless there is some transient cause for this, it's possible he may need a pacemaker to speed up his heart at those times when it's running a bit slow.