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Somewhat concerned....

Posted , 9 users are following.

Razorback
Razorback

Hi all,

about 4 weeks ago I was at our caravan with my family. At quarter to one in the morning, I started sweating profusely; tingling in arms and my heart was pacing very fast. I had no choice but to call an ambulance. On the ambulance they queried SVT and AF??

once at a and e they gave me Adenosine, which was awful. They then gave me another drug IV. After 7 hours! My heartbeat returned to a much more acceptable beat. I was then discharged on 10mg Bisoprolol. Subsequent visits to hospital with "apparent" heart complaints and a combination of other physical problems a number of individuals have said that they thought 10mg was a bit on the high side???

since then I have developed an unwanted byproduct. I believe to be suffering from some sort of anxiety disorder. I don't believe I'm suffering from any side effects - apart from a slow pulse of 48, which my partner is somewhat concerned about, but I believe that is a result of the bisoprolol. I do feel a little "heavy" and "non energetic" but other than that just a feeling of being a little scared.

i get my 24hour ECG tape next Friday and hopefully an appointment with the cardiologist for a definitive diagnosis.

what I want to know is, is SVT a result of lifestyle and can I do something about it or is a congenital problem and there's nothing I can do about it and it was going to happen anyway.

any advice would be greatly appreciated.

from a slightly worried individual.

0 likes, 42 replies

42 Replies

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  • billhopefull
    billhopefull Razorback

    Posted

    oops sticky fingers-- apologies

    continuing previous post

    ...based on my own experience, and verified by the Pace Maker clinic, IF they say you have AF and have a pulse rate in the 40's suggest you might ask about having a PM fitted.

    My pulse rate was mid fifties but had a PM fitted at 60bpm and my AF imroved amazingly as it eliminated the flutter at the lower pulse rates.

     

    • Razorback
      Razorback billhopefull

      Posted

      Can bisoprolol mask the symptoms of SVT or AF. The reason I ask is because I get my 24hr tape on Friday, can the tape pick up anything?
    • billhopefull
      billhopefull Razorback

      Posted

      Not certain about the masking bit but as your monitor is 24hour and bisop has a half lfe (is only fully effective) for 10-12 hours I assume the recording will monitor 12 hours of your "normal" heart behaviour.
    • Razorback
      Razorback billhopefull

      Posted

      Will just have to wait and see. Just been on the phone to the Friarage hospital in Northallerton, which was where I was taken 4 weeks ago for the SVT. they said that they do have my ECGs but James Cook University Hospital hasn't asked for them!!!! JCUH the hospital I visited subsequently for chest pain. I told them about the incident and they said they have no record!!! Part of the same trust too!!! Patient Centred Care does not exist when I have to do all the chasing up. Even had to chase up my GP!!! Shocking.
    • Razorback
      Razorback billhopefull

      Posted

      Billhopefull, so what you are saying is that if I have AF and the bisoprolol is only effective for so many hours they will pick up the AF on the tape. As you know I had an attack about 5/6 weeks ago now, been on bisoprolol since. I've also had subsequent ECGs, which I am led  to believe did not show up AF. Spoke with a consultant and he said the ECGs he had in front of him had no indication of AF. does that mean I haven't got AF or does it mean that the bisoprolol is keeping on top of the AF? 
    • billhopefull
      billhopefull Razorback

      Posted

      The 24h tape should enable the consultant to have a good idea of what is happening with and without the med. and how the bisop. dosage is working. The heart, though is very complicated so hopefully they can find out the causes of your discomfort.

      I do know of a now 92 year old who had a 7 day monitor when she was 89.

    • derek76
      derek76 billhopefull

      Posted

      If a drug is only fully effective for part of the day should the dosage not be increased and be split between morning and night ?
    • billhopefull
      billhopefull derek76

      Posted

      Yes that is what I do with my dosages but I think "Razorback" is anxious to know how his condition might be affected by the bisop. and whether it masks the symptoms his heart is showing and thus making his diagnosis more difficult
  • Razorback
    Razorback

    Posted

    Turned up for a 24hr tape to be fitted. And nothing else. Anyway got an appointment for a review. I thought a scan but no it wasn't and I spoke with a consultant who had no idea about my case. The tape I received on a Friday, Saturday I handed it in. My appointment for review was on Tuesday. Guess what no results from the tape. My girlfriend and I went mad. What's going on with the communication???? Anyway the consultant chased it up. I have my scan next Thursday. Then I have my appointment with the cardiologist  in october!!!! 16 weeks after my first episode of SVT. The consultant I spoke with said that it's likely I have paraoxysmol (sorry bout spelling) supraventricular tachycardia. So I won't get a definitive diagnosis til October. Shocking!!!
    • billhopefull
      billhopefull Razorback

      Posted

      Apologies but what type of "scan" are you expecting?

      Would you consider a private consultation? Usually can get one in 2 weeks at a cost of around £170? I have found these are longer and more helpful but that might depend on your consultant.

      Else you could try for an emergency appointment

    • Razorback
      Razorback billhopefull

      Posted

      Hi billhopefull,

      its an echocardiogram. If I had to wait longer than I have already then I would have considered a private scan, but since its next Thursday I will continue with that. 

    • derek76
      derek76 Razorback

      Posted

      There is also a stress echo cardigram where they inject a drug to speed up your heart and or have you peddling a bike at the same time.
    • Razorback
      Razorback derek76

      Posted

      I hated the feeling of my racing heart. Absolutely awful...but if they have to do that I guess I will have no choice. Thanks. Will keep all posted. 
    • derek76
      derek76 Razorback

      Posted

      Yours will probably be the normal one if they have not told you otherwise.

      I had a 17 week wait for that one. It would have been longer but I kept on phoning to ask about cancellations. 

      I'm having another echocardiogram next week as they follow up aortic valve replacement patients on an annual basis.

    • billhopefull
      billhopefull Razorback

      Posted

      I was scheduled for a stress test (way back then sept 2011) but the medic. consulted someone and said that as my heart was already at 140 bpm and that was how high he was intending to stress it he would not proceed with the stress test and advised me to make an emergency appnt. The cardiac consultant said at the consultation that my heart had undergone the stress test and was therefore fine under stress!!! He then prescribed the digoxin which controlled the rate 

      So hopefully your medics. will do the same

      Re echocardiogram there are different types some more detailed than others. Details can be found on British Heart Foundation website https://www.bhf.org.uk/

    • james57884
      james57884 Razorback

      Posted

      HI there,

      checked my e-mails, got one from patient forum which I have more or less let go of now' BUT, its hard to resist trying to put someone's mind at rest, if it's possible, so here goes...

      I had paroxymal AF and was prescribed Bisporolol 1.25 which did me no favours whatsoever, making a zombie of me for a year. I stopped taking it of my own accord. Later I had an ablation, which seems to have cured th AF.

      (I experienced all kinds of worrying mishaps re. ECGs, too lengthy to go into here)

      Eventually, a 3-day Holter Monitor check revealed no signs of AF, but did show I had SVT. By this time, I had acquired considerably more knowledge about my heart problems, and treatment, than when they started.

      AFib can be dangerous if left untreated as it poses the threat of a stroke, Be choosy and assertive about the drugs offered. (I took the precaution before the ablation, of taking Warfarin.)

      SVT I am assured, is a nuisance at times and worrying for some, but it does not require treatment.

      I'm 72, and so far, I haven't joined the western world's average 35-tablets-a-day taken by the 65s and over...!

      I take nothing at all at the moment and I'm hoping that exercise and sensible food will keep me safer and happier than many of the drugs I was offered.

      Very best wishes, James

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