Anyone on beta blockers for Tachycardia?

[Millie1]

I've had tachycardia for years - tried beta blockers at first but they didn't work. Since then, if the t'cardia flares up it usually settles itself. Had ECG, echo and 24 hr monitor about 15 months ago but no action was taken medically. Anyway, feeling terrible of late, went to GP today and then to cardiac assessment unit. When I got there my heart rate was hitting 138 beats per minute - eek! They monitored me and it started to drop back without drugs. Spent a few hours hooked up and came home when it was in high 80's. The nurse said they will ask the consultant tomorrow about beta blockers. I'm wondering whether anyone has had success with them? I used them 15/16 years ago so I'm guessing they're more effective now? What about side effects? Anything I should know cos I'm at the point I want and need to try something!

Thanks

Just hopefully bumping!

I used to take them for migraines. The main side effect I had was very strange, very "real" dreams, where the high degrees of lucidity meant would wake confused and disoriented, and often feel "off" for the rest of the day because of the dream.

Hope your heart rate settles soon.

Thanks Mimsy - sounds a bit extreme!

I'm no further forward - I rang the ward to be told the cardiologist is on holiday til Tuesday. I know it's not urgent but really, if tablets will help stop me feeling so rough, I'd like not to have to endure another 4 days of racing heart and dizziness.

Hi. I am trying to sort out my heart problems at the moment..started in January out of the blue with racing heart, missed beats and fainting, dizziness and headaches, but the main thing was the breathlessness. Had and EKG and I was having PVC's, which many people have, but after a 24 hour Holter monitor they found I was getting 10,000 a day, with Long QT (so my heart was taking too long to re-set after the PVC's) and also frequent episodes of tachycardia in groups of 3. I was put on Beta blockers, tried 4 different types, but they gave me terrible side effects, to the point where I couldn't function..headaches, slow speech, fuzziness, very slow heartbeats at times and feeling freezing cold. I have also been on Calcium Channel Blockers, which were just as bad. This week I am trying another beta blocker called Carvedilol, it makes me fuzzy for the first 2 hours and has reduced, but not stopped the arrythmias. I think the next step is ablation surgery. I could not believe how awful the side effects are of these tablets, but of douse everyone is different. let me know how you get on. I wish you better luck than me!

Oh God 4pinkbabies that sounds like a horrific experience you're going through. I really hope you can get sorted out soon without the need for surgery. Fingers crossed for you.

Your tale is almost enough to put me off tablets but I have felt so bad this last week or two I feel I need to try them if they offer them.

Hope you're okay.

I have been on them for a number of years, not for heart problems though. The main side effect is an impaired ability to run. I run daily but if I've had a BB within the last 24 hours my legs feel sluggish. I dont actually feel tired otherwise, just when I run or go upstairs quickly. I have also had a tendency to get migraines over the years and the BB's have done nothing to help those.
I have also been having very vivid dreams recently but never thought about the BB's being the cause as they are quite recent

Well, as I said, everyone is different, so give them a go. You may just start on half a tablet twice a day and then build up if you can tolerate them. Sluggish is a good way to describe how they make you feel. This last lot, Carvedilol, actually make the breathlessness worse. Sometimes I think I am inventing symptoms, but I wouldn't really have time to, with 4 little kids and a full time demanding job! I just need to get better quickly. We are in Asia and the care here has been incredible..very fast on the medical insurance and I have been under an American Cardiologist, who is great. I don't think things would have happened so fast back in the UK, although at times I have wished I was back home..we may have to move back if I have to give up work or go part time. What I have learnt through all this is that I need to slow down and take notice of how I am feeling. The best medication for controlling the heart problems was Rythmol, but this was the one that gave me the worst side effects. I have also tried Verapamil, Bisoprolol and a couple of others. I would be interested to hear what you try and whether you get on with it, Millie. Good luck.

4pinkbabies

Er sorry but IMHO you should have a pacemaker not BBs. If they ablate are they going to do ablate and pace? What are they ablating? If it is the AV node you will be dependent on a pacemaker for life afterwards, if it is the PVs then you have AF and this is THE BEST treatment, if it is an accessory pathway like a bundle of kent then again ablation is the best option.

If they do want to ablate then cryo or radio frequency are much less invasive than surgical ablation - surgical involves oopening your chest, RF and Cryo are done by putting a catheter in your thigh and putting a thin wire up your veins into your heart - but I assume your cardiologist has told you this.

Long QT is in the normal beats not the PVCs (AKA VEs) and would indicate a pacemaker for most people.

Were your 10 PVCs in runs or singles? If they are in runs that would make sense to give medication and may also indicate in inplantable defib.

Also your name suggest youhave 4 children, long QT syndrome can be hereditary so may I suggest you have your children tested? I don't mean to frighten you, I'm going o very little information here but if you have long QT then your children having an ECG is easy and doesn't hurt.

If they do indicate a pacemaker then Medtronic (including vitatron) and St Jude pacemakers are common in the UK so you would have no problems having checkups in the UK with one of those if you do return.

Millie1

Is it just tachycardia or supraventricular tachycardia? If it is the latter and you only have very occasional episodes then the cardiologist can teach you a couple of techniques to slow your heart. My favorite is swallowing a large chunk of icecream - the others you need to be shown/taught by an expert so I won't describe then here. And 138 is not actually that bad, obviously not normal at rest, but I have seen rates of 200+ so please try not to worry too much, and discuss options other than beta blockers. From a DR's point of view, giving BBs will treat you, end of story but if it has only happened once in 15 years you might not want to take them.

Anyway both of you, good luck.

Thanks Sassh. It's SVT. have it regularly but this episode has really knocked the stuffing out of me. That said, have rested all weekend and have a bit more energy and more normal pulse now! Thanks for the ice-cream tip - the nurses were amazed I hadn't been told to drink ice-cold water and that's what helped last week. Need to get freezer fixed .

i have svt too. tried beta blockers years ago but didn't like them at all, i felt out of breath all the time and couldn't sleep. luckily for me, i don't have that much trouble with it now, it feels like it skips a beat sometimes, or flutters, but nothing like the problems i had as a child before it was diagnosed. mine goes at about 200bpm when the svt clicks in. i have also used verapamil but that feels really weird as it gradually slowed my heart back down to a normal rate, i'm used to it stopping suddenly and going back to normal. if i have any problems with it in the future, will be asking for an ablation as that seems to be the best solution. hope yours gets sorted soon.

That's interesting daenerysstormborn. Am rapidly going off beta blockers! It only really annoys me when I get really run down and I'm extremely run down at the moment. Have been having a lot of dizziness which was, a year ago or more, put down to SVT and anxiety (which annoyed me somewhat as I wasn't anxious except about how I felt!). Anyway, will see what GP says tomorrow.

Thanks for the info Sassh. the PVC's are in singles, but lately they are getting even more frequent. The Long QT, as far as I know, is acquired. Would I then still need to get the kids tested? My potassium was quite low, but the pauses don't seem to be getting shorter. I need to ask a lot more questions about the ablation..it was only mentioned briefly and I will also ask about pacemakers. I have totally trusted the Cardiologist, but maybe I need to get a second opinion. the Carvedilol did nothing, so I am now back to trying half of a Rythmol twice a day, but I really cannot tolerate these Beta Blockers.

If it is aquired it is highly unlikly it is a hereditary form - but an ECG is not invasive, takes 5 mins and has no side effects.

Millie ablation for SVT is different if it is Wolf-Parkinson-White, where there is an extra bit of conducting tissue to blast, for other kinds it can be a bit hit and miss.