new onset LBBB??

[YZ1911]

i am wondering if anybody can help me with my problem here. i have very high blood pressure,i am overweight and live a sedentary lifestyle. i went to my cardiologist a week ago and had a 12 lead EKG and it showed just sinus tachycardia. the past 4 days i have had on and off left sided chest pain and i decided to go back yesterday and see what is going on. the nurse measured my blood pressure at 211/118 and i had another 12 lead and this time there was a left bundle branch block with a wide QRS. my cardiologist wrote down a note for me to take to the ER. now,my problem is that my insurance ran out and i never made it to the ER. i am financially saddled and i do not want to pay a lot of money. what i want to know is this,what can a new LBBB indicate and is my condition considered serious? the chest pains that i get are not horrible,but it is still there.    thanks.

[is_something_wrong]

I think the most important thing to do here is to get your blood pressure under control. 210/120 is severe, and possibly a sign of secondary hypertension (some other condition causing high blood pressure). The fact that you also have sinus tachycardia may be a sign that something is severely stressing the body. Under normal circumstances, a blood pressure that high would be compensated by a slow heart rate, that's the way the body usually respond to high blood pressure, reducing the heart rate (however, it is possible that extreme anxiety drove both the blood pressure and heart rate high?).

There is not much we can do. This should, and must, be handled by physicians, and I'm afraid that several diseases must be ruled out, including pheocromocytoma. If you are overweight and sedentary, lifestyle changes are necessary, but first this severe condition must be brought under control.

LBBB can be caused by high blood pressure, usually through left ventricle hypertrophy, but other factors may apply as well. When your systolic blood pressure is 210, and you also have sinus tachycardia, the heart is running with an extreme energy and oxygen consumption (measured through systolic blood pressure x heart rate). At extreme levels, this may cause angina-like symptoms even in normal hearts.

Your LBBB may be a sign of temporary lack of blood supply caused by this, but that's just speculation.

[MichelleP_3811]

Your blood pressure is too high.  I would say see if you can find a drug store that has the free blood pressure machine and check to see if it continues to be that high.  That said, if a cardiologist recommended you go to the ER he saw a need.  Considering you are having chest pain and LBBB it could mean you have suffered a heart attack or some other heart malady like cardiomyopathy.  It may be minor at this point but needs to be addressed.    If you are hesitant to go to the ER find out from your doctor what steps you can take to ensure your heart health.  I would assume he has put you on heart meds?  In any event, the hospital may be expensive but being dead is permanent.   Please take whatever is going on seriously.

[itdood]

I'd be worried about the blood pressure.  211/118 is in stroke territory.  That is dangerously high.

My Mother in law once measured 180/100 and they admitted her into the hospital as an emergency, they were afraid she'd stroke out.  They got it under control with meds.

The LBBB might be related to the high blood pressure, I can't even imagine the strain on your heart with BP that high.