A few weeks before my heart symptoms i used a tens machine on my back pain has anybody else used one.Is there a conection with AF,argzxoni61

[Hidden]

I have AF and recently asked my GP whether I could use a Tens machine, I didn't specify where and she didn't ask. She said yes. I'm not saying she's right, but that's what she said.

[BobD Volunteer]

I really don't see any possible connection from anything I have read or heard in the last ten years.

BobD

[Hidden]

I was under the impression that such devices were not to be used in patients with heart arrhythmias.

Sandra

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Hi Yatsura missunderstood my question i think.I used the tens machine before i had any heart problems then got the AF so i wondered if this had happened to anybody else

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Sorry ! I assumed that you were in between bouts of AF . --- didn't realise this was your 1st attack.

Sandra

[RaeOfDreams in reply to Hidden]

Hello, I had the same experience you did using a wireless TENS unit for just a few minutes maybe 10-15, so this isn't some enigma, it's happened to you and it's happened to me and there are articles out there that address heart palpitations when using a TENS unit. until I use the TENS unit yesterday oh, my palpitations were well under control. it is a good idea to mention this to your doctor. I would hold off on using it for any length of time, until you see a doctor about what happened to you with the TENS unit, just to be safe. I wish you the best.

[Batbara in reply to RaeOfDreams]

Yes I agree. I went for iontophoresis on my lower back. I do get AFib from time to time, but I realized that I was getting it every other day while being treated. I stopped treatment and was still getting it every other day. Today it’s been a week and a half since I had my last treatment. I am hoping the AFib will cease to happen so frequently now. I can’t think of any other reason I got AFib . I will wait and see if it subsides now and report back .

[ryo0hki42 in reply to Hidden]

TO my knowledge, as long as the tens device electrodes to not cause the charge to go anywhere near the heart this may not be a problem. If you were to draw a line from one pad through the body to the other pad and your heart is in that line or near it, its a bad thing. For lower back it would be fine. ask your doctor for proper placement.

[Hidden]

Would anyone use one if they had a pacemaker fitted? Don't know much about it, just a thought though.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Hi Koll I used mine before having any heart problems I just wonderd if it could have caused them and if anybody else had the same idea

[RaeOfDreams in reply to Hidden]

If you hadn't had heart symptoms before using the TENS unit then it's most likely the cause of the onset of the palpitations. Be safe and see your doctor. it's listed in the side effects on many of the tens units out there including the Icy Hot one for sale in the drugstore over the counter.

[RaeOfDreams in reply to Hidden]

no I have read articles that say not to use it in people who have pacemakers. You can look this up but I would also talk to my doctor to let him or her confirm this information. Be well and be safe

[Offcut]

My wife has one and she swears by it however when I read the info sheet it states not to with heart problems or arrhythmia. I had a word with my doctor and he said not to. But I do not need much to go into a wobble so probably wise words.

[sandrobe20012003]

I have had AFib for roughly 7 years but I also have Lymphoedema in my lower legs and I wanted to use a machine, I can't remember the name of now, but it relieves the legs and feet by putting the feet onto a platform which sends an electrical pulse up the feet and legs to relax them and I was politely told NOT to use such a thing. Just my experience.

[H4tromp]

I work for the CDC and remain anonymous. Don't use a TENS machine. Our research shows that it interferes with natural chemical and neurological functions. This can result from heart issues, brain activity, and bodily chemical reactions and balances.

[BMichelle]

Argzxoni61 , something similar may have happened to me. I couldn't find any info about this but I used it on my back and then for the last several days I'm feeling strange chest/ heart palpitations and breathing difficulties.

[mawolfe in reply to BMichelle]

Looks like there could be a connection from other replies, and I also experienced AF for the first time after using the TENS for about a week on my back. Not the outcome I was looking for!!!

[Batbara in reply to mawolfe]

Could you tell me if it went back to normal after you stopped using the tens.

[Batbara in reply to BMichelle]

Oops, just read your follow up question. Now I know the answer.

[mawolfe]

This also just happened to me, and I stopped using the TENS but the A F has continued. Am now on 3 drugs for it. Am very curious if there could be a connection, and would love to hear from anyone else who has had this happen.

[RaeOfDreams in reply to mawolfe]

just a suggestion you might want to try some magnesium oh, it's a natural muscle relaxant and can help with palpitations. Ask your doctor about this.

[ken_best]

I used ESTIM and later developed AF. Finally got my AF in sinus rythm with Flecainide. Tried ESTIM again, and again, my heart went to AF within a few hours. So perhaps there is a link between TENS and AF.

[Hidden]

I do not see any problem in using the tens machine but I would not use if I had a pacemaker.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I didn't have a PM when I used it only later on did I suffer from AF that's why I I asked the question

[sleeksheep]

My machine says not with heart disease , and always speak to your Dr. before starting.

I have used a Tens machine for over 20 years , never had the slightest palpitation from usage.

After knee surgery I was having daily applications for over a month and that was a good few years before I ever had Afib , continued to use one for my back ever since while in sinus rhythm and when not also.

I have no enlargements of the atrial chambers and no heart disease

[concerned777]

i realize this is written years later but i suffer from chronic UPPER spine scoliosis pain, so bad it affects the surrounding muscles of the spine causing knots, also affects my neck and shoulders and Ive exercised and stretches and nothing helps. it gets so bad it makes hard to breathe and i get migraines. one day i tried my husband's tens unit and it was awesome! i could do my housework and baking and even lift things. then i noticed after wearing it off and on for a couple of weeks, i started having heart flutters. i had the pads on my upper back near my left and right {under wear the shoulder blades are} so you can say, near the heart but in the back. i got concerned cuz i never had heart issues before and wasn't a big coffee drinker or anything. so the flutters started getting worse not to mention the allergic reaction to the adhesives. i went to a doc appt and he said "do you know you have... such a long medical word i can't even remember what he said" it means a heart fluttering, he said he never heard it before. i explained i am using a tens unit and he shook his head with disbelief and said it's probably NOT a good idea. i thought only people with pacemakers and defibrillators weren't supposed to wear them but if you think about it our bodies have electric currents running through, so does our hearts and anything that send pulses out can affect that. i ditched the unit and doing better even though now i have a "noise" when they listen to my heart. There is not enough research done to rule out not wearing them near your heart so just listen to your body, if something seems off or hinky, it probably is. Now i'm back to having chronic back pain and it's making life so hard and i can honestly say it's my Lord Jesus who gets me through each day, He has been my Strength and i will be glad when He calls me home. No more pain there in heaven with Him. people here have no idea the pain so you don't get a lot of empathy. i dont want woe is me, i want relief. He is my Rock, each and everyday. so good.