can a fast pulse be dangerous for me?

[justanumber]

hello guys,i know that doctors say that with a structurally normal heart a fast pulse should not be a big deal. meanwhile,i have been diagnosed with left ventricular hypertrophy confirmed by ekg and echo. i also have mild diastolic dysfunction. the past 2 days,my pulse has been constantly over 100. anywhere from 100 lying down to 169 walking one block. i feel so winded just walking a block,it is horrible..i am constantly gasping for air. i am obese and i want to lose weight,but how can i if just walking a block causes me this trouble.

my question is,with my thickened heart muscle,can a fast pulse for a long period of time do it more damage???

[dolphin8808]

I couldn't agree more! My BP has been elevated lately as I have gain weight. My pressure is around 130/80 +/- and my doc is sure with losing the weight, it will drop as well. Also, my HR has always been high.

But lately I have really been reading the lables and OMG!!!!!!  Salt is in EVERYTHING! I am not sure even how people can add salt to food.! I mean it is awful!  I am restriting myself to 1500 mgs a day or less and have been doing rather well. They also make Speghetti Sauce that is Heart Smart. Whole wheat pastas, frozen veggies only NO canned veggies and no canned soups. Only low sodium frozen "lean meals".... no salt at the table and Ms. Dash is a great substitue.

Justanumber, I too started very short of breath etc... I suffer from PVCs so that all scared me but with time it is getting better. I agree that you need to work closely with your doctor to determine the best way for you to start your program. Don't give up, you are going to do great and be soooo happy you made lifestyle changes!

[grendslori]

One of the things I would do if I were you is to ask your doctor to allow you to go into Cardiac Rehab. There you will exercise while being on a monitor with medical staff present in the room.  It would be helpful to know exactly why you have left ventricular hypertrophy which is totally different than hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. I have LVH, my daughter had HCM. If you have LVH, a faster heart rate will actually help to strengthen the heart muscle, because the heart muscle is working and like all muscles, it will strengthen. (This is one reason I'm in CR right now) In HCM, which is a totally different issue, if severe enough, rates such as in the SVT range can cause problems because the ventricles are too thick, cannot relax enough to allow the chambers to be filled and not enough blood gets out to the body. Also, if the walls are too thick then the blood supply is lost to the muscle and mini heart attacks happen all the time. Try and get into a CR clinic where yoiu can exercise regularly; it will make a world of difference in how you feel. Also, be VERY careful about the sodium levels in the foods you eat. Both my daughter and I are on a 2000mg sodium restriction. We spent 4 hours in the grocery store and read lables and got the SHOCK of our lives reading sodium levels in the foods we were eating!!! Even cereal has sodium in it. A simple pot pie has 800mg....one HALF can of soup can have 400-800mg depending on the soup type and some of the "meal" soups can have as much as 1400mgs!! We try and keep to a 600mg per meal with one snack per day. So far I have lost 20lbs. We no longer eat anything processed and nothing bought fast food. Even pizza is out the window.......and we feel SO MUCH BETTER. Sodium can really make one feel lousy! Take care

[is_something_wrong]

Hi,

I'm so happy that you want to lose weight!!

I can't say if this would be dangerous for you or not, but maybe you should ask your doctor for some rate-controlling drugs like beta blockers in the beginning? Also, maybe you should lose some weight through diet before starting exercising, you should discuss that too with your doctor.

In general, fast heart rates don't increase wall thickness. Rather the opposite. High blood pressure increases wall thickness (eventually causing hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, though the non-genetic form is known as hypertensive cardiomyopathy) and rapid heart rate rather dilates the heart. That's why long distance runners develop a heart where both inner volume grows and wall thickness grows, and weightlifters often just develop hypertrophy (as weightlifting doesn't increase heart rate that much).