diuretics cause af

[ralft]

Are diuretics a common cause of af episodes. My brother has recently discontinued his diuretic because he is confident that it was causing many of his episodes. He also thinks that the diuretic lowers his sodium and potassium levels and they might be the real cause.

[Hidden]

Diuretics can affect electrolyte levels. This could trigger AF. But not commonly depending on how you define common

[Hidden]

Hi ralft, Did your brother let his doctor know? He should because stopping on his own could cause other problems to develop depending on why his doc prescribed them. Patients have the choice and the right to disagree with or stop a treatment but it's dangerous to do this without involving his doctor. Often, telling a doctor what is or isn't working for you will help find alternatives and possibly save someone from worse problems. But you have to level with your doctor. A good, concerned doctor will work WITH you re treatment so you don't come to harm.Diuretics are often used to prevent heart failure and, like all meds, can sometimes have side effects. But it's always dangerous to just stop a med without professional advice. BTW is his belief about the diuretic based on any scientific info? He can share this with his doc to help them work together on a solution. But encourage your brother to handle this situation by talking to his doctor not just making the decision on his own. My answer is long, I know, but his choice seems scary to me. Your brother is lucky to have such a concerned relative in his corner. Take care. irina1975

[Hidden]

While it is true that low potassium levels can contribute towards AF the decision to stop diuretics should be left to patients doc. There is a potassium sparing diuretic available. Also potassium levels can be helped greatly by diet. Not a good idea to stop meds without approval.

[ralft]

My brother definitely did not stop the diuretic on his own. But after some research, he discovered the potential problem and asked his MD to test for sodium and potassium. They were both low and the MD agreed to stop the diuretic. Has anyone tried using supplemental sodium & potassium while using a diuretic. As a user of many supplements, I think I have looked for potassium supplements without success.

[rosyG]

I'm sure low Potassium has affected my AF- you can get replacements when on diuretics- Slow K is good but always under medical advice/ prescription

[higgy52]

stopped my water tablet, because the next 3 hours i was peeing every 10 min so could not go to work, so i stopped taking it, never felt any different apart from not wanting to go toilet all the time.

[cassie46]

I always eat on or two bananas a day to keep up potassium levels. I only use a water tab now (flurosimide) when needed because it does cause my heart to flutter. As far needing the loo - that is a problem. I am retired to if I take one I take it when I am not going out for three or four hours and then I am okay. Of course you cann't do this if you are working or out for the day. With AF also causing the same problem at times, I know all the loos in our town and sometimes when we go away I have a quick recky of nearest loos ext. When we went to Norfolk in the summer, we went to a lot of the remote beaches who had a loo in the car park if you were lucky - but did not put me off - there were plenty of remote sand dunes I had to avail my self of lol. Hubby was lookout guy and dog was bouncing around telling all were I was - but it was pretty deserted.

Cassie

[Polski in reply to cassie46]

Have you considered supplementing with magnesium? It is not for everyone (don't use it if you have kidney problems), but I found it did help to decrease the trips, particularly at night.

[LindaDaisy]

I was started on diuretics last July and I haven’t had an AF episode since. Previously they were about once a month and sometimes had to be chemically reverted. I had my mineral levels checked because I was concerned about magnesium and potassium after reading a lot about it. To my surprise all my mineral levels were good, apart from zinc which was a little low. I don’t consider I have a good diet really, but I do have a banana a day. I’m not saying diuretics have stopped my AF (it will be back) but they haven’t promoted episodes.

[cuore]

My GP took me off diuretics when I was diagnosed with atrial flutter.