A&E / heart question? ❤️

[Tangerinesoda]

perhaps a bit niche but really hoping someone can help

I was in a&e recently where it was picked up that I had a fast heart rate. The doctor said he wasn’t sure if it was SVT or a normal (but just extremely fast) heart rate. The ECG was unclear and my heart rate was 180. We tried different things to bring it down and I was advised about a medication we could try to bring it down. Apparently it stops the heart for a second and makes it go back to normal again.

I was terrified at the thought of it (especially after hearing how awful it makes you feel) and was too frightened to get it done.

Im waiting to see cardiology now. But in the meantime, if it happens again then I’m worried about getting the medication. I understand if it’s SVT it will work, but the doctor wasn’t certain it was SVT and said it might just be a normal but fast heart rate- if this was the case and it’s not SVT, would getting the medication cause problems? Just terrified of my heart stopping and not starting again. I’ll ask for more information at my appointment but just in the meantime I wondered if anyone could offer any experience or knowledge about it? Thanks 😀

no idea who Emma is! that’s not my name

Ah sorry, thought I recognised you. Ignore me.

Haha no worries, was a bit confused there for a second lol!

Would it be the GP or cardiologist who would prescribe the medication? I guess all you can do is wait until you see them and ask more questions about it.

If it's just a high heart rate they might give you beta blockers. I take these and ha e no side effects from them, they just my heart going too fast and I feel SO much better on them.

My daughter had SVT and the usual methods for stopping it were physical in the first instance. For example, blowing very hard into a syringe, and then being tipped back suddenly. Some people apparently find very cold water on the face works. She was offered ablation because when she came out of SVT in an A&E trip she had a funny trace. I think if the physical manoeuvre - think it's called the Valsalva - hadn't worked the medication would have been the next step. She had emergency ablation which seems to have pretty much fixed it apart from one weird episode in the chemistry lab at school. I presume they took a trace at A&E and so should be able to tell you whether it's SVT when you're in cardiology. I'm sorry I can't tell you much more about the medication, but I just wanted to reply because I know it's pretty scary.

@Hoglet70 why would you try to out someone on a thread? Bizarre. Anyway, it sounds similar to a friend of mine and their name isn't Emma...

Why on earth would you try to out someone like that? Good grief.

Anyway, op, my daughter has SVT and she occasionally has to use medication to bring her heart rate down, but it doesn't "stop" her heart. I'm not familiar with what that could be. If you do have SVT, it is almost always harmless, just annoying. When will you see the cardiologist?

It was a there and then type thing, they said the medication goes through a drip and then it should work pretty quickly (I think it might have been called adeno- something but I might have completely misheard that!)

You can't out people who are already famous.

My daughter didn't get on well with the beta blockers she was on before the ablation but I imagine if she'd had to stay on the longer they'd have tweaked the dosage and type.

The medication is adenosine

I think that the medication you're talking about is for a cardioversion procedure which is for a stopping SVT attacks which don't appear to be resolving. I think it's the step they use before defibrillation

As scary as the medication sounds, it is probably preferable to having your heart rhythm reset electrically. Did they try any other methods to slow your heart rate before discussing medication?

If you understood who I thought this was, you'd do it too.
I said sorry when she said it wasn't her!

No, I absolutely would not.

I would ask your cardiologist if there’s someone in the department you can discuss this with. I believe they often have a sort of support worker, whose job includes giving listening to patients and giving more advice than doctors have time for.
Also, ask if they can point you towards any online resources or forums.
Best of luck, OP.

I had this. I had adenosine too. Honestly nothing to panic about.

I ended up on a course of cardicor and it resolved itself.

Occasionally I get an episode and I blow down hard on my thumb and it sorts itself.

You would, you really would!

@Hoglet70 don't be a bugger

Honestly, I'm a nice person and OP who isn't Emma, I am sorry really.

@Tangerinesoda hope you get some good advice. I have reported hoglet

Honestly, just shut up already. Nice people don't try to out someone and invade their privacy, no matter if they are famous or not.

They are aware of the possibility that it is not SVT, they would not offer the adenosine option if it wasn't safe to do so in the eventuality that it is not SVT.

Cardiac issues are scary, and sometimes cardiac specialists can be a bit blase and forget that - I know, I deal with them several times a year and will until it finally kills me (not SVT!)... Just make 'em slow down and explain things again if you're not sure you understand.

They do when they tell fibs all the time!