My cardiologist told me my AFIB is worse. He wants to see me in 2 weeks. Last month he prescribed me Digoxin, to which I had adverse reactions.
Now he prescribed Carvedilol. I read the warnings and I have numerous:
I have bronchial asthma - 63 years of it!! And the warnings say that Carvedilol can kill an asthmatic. The warning was pretty strong - " A single dose of Carvedilol can be fatal in people with asthma" it reads.
I was just diagnosed with Stage 3 Chronic Kidney Disease. I showed the cardiologist the lab report and he said 'kidney disease is not an issue'
My blood sugar is now higher - 247 is prediabetes and my A1C is also showing 6.7, the highest it ever was.
I am already edematous all over my body, especially my face and entire GI tract, and the carvedilol warnings say that it could cause edema. DUH!
I researched alternatives to Carvedilol and they all warn against breathing problems.
I just don't know what to do.
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All beta blockers can exacerbate asthma . Carvedilol belongs to that class of drugs. You should ask to be referred to an Electrophysiologist EP who. specializes in AFib to discuss possible safer and effective treatments.
Thank you for the suggestion. Since my heart condition is new to me, I'm happy to learn about specialties that can help!
Agree with etheral in that you should seek a second opinion from an EP.
I’m not medically trained, but as I understand it, not all betablockers are the same. Bisoprolol is (or was) not recommended for asthmatics but I think Nebivolol is less of a problem but a calcium channel blocker such as Diltiazem might be more suitable. Here in the U.K., Digoxin is not normally prescribed these days for AF, but your other health conditions may have a bearing on what has been prescribed. It seems to me that you should seek advice from an Electrophysiologist because they are best placed to determine the most suitable treatment for AF.....
You are clearly and understandably anxious about taking that drug, being anxious wont help your AFIB or overall health. I think I would be inclined to book a private appointment with an EP, should get one in two weeks. Could be the best £250 you will spend.
I had problems with trying to get taken off bisprolol because it was causing breathing problems, I have mild COPD as well as AF and HF. I asked back in 2018 at a yearly cardio appointment to be put on Nebivolol because it was recommended for people with asthma or lung problems. After looking through his drug book he prescribed Carvidilol, did not explain why he would not prescribe Nebivolol. I got prescription from the chemist, first thing I saw was a warning in bold on the back of the pack - Do not take if you have asthma or lung problems. I did not take any. He obviously did not read the warning, I was so furious.
Eventually after much complaining to my GP she prescribed Nebivolol and I have been on them for nearly 2 years now, Breathing problems much improved and feel much better on them, more alert.
As above the suggestion of seeing an EP privately would be a good thing, your cardiologist does seem a bit useless.
Always ask them what it says about lung complaints,I do I never trust any of them,lol,I take atenolol no more than 75 mg and I have asthma and copd as long as you stick to low doses it should be fine,if you can't tolerate BB ask for vepramil it's brill and ok for lung problems my sis takes it and she has coped plus athsma it's the only one she can tolerate,good luck.
On the kidney question , you should ask him to explain why he is so certain that it is not an issue- he might be able to set your mind at rest (perhaps he has a good reason for his confident assessment). If he cannot, then you need to ask him why he has prescribed the particular medication. The same applies to the asthma- it seems unlikely this is an oversight, but if it is, then it needs to be addressed. It may be that only particular types of asthma are problematic with this medication. At any rate, O would ring his secretary and pass on your concerns. The longer you wait the more anxiety -provoking it will be.
A number of years ago, I went to my doctor who I had seen for 17 years and asked her about some pain I'd been having in my mid back. I asked if it could be kidney and she said no, the kidneys are much lower, and she touched my back just above my pelvis. I thought , okay I don't know where my kidneys are. I'd been living with this pain all this time and when doctors found a kidney tumor and asked if I feel pain from it I said no. I just discovered that I was right. The kidneys are exactly where I had told the doctor I was having pain.
I'm wondering if the sudden diagnosis of Stage 3 chronic kidney disease might not be so sudden. I'm wondering if my heart problem aggravated it and it's now showing more active symptoms.
My faith in cardiologists is not great after my experience in living in different areas and seeing quite a few different ones and experiencing the same poor care and choices. I have had the odd good one but their waiting lists soon stack up once the dept manager knows they are good.
I was on it for almost a year, with Bisoprolol and it was fine. I say "fine" because I was taken off it after cardioversion and I felt no different so I know it didn't do anything bad. Still stuck on the Bisoprolol though and HR too high for what I like.
Afib gets progressively worse because (I think) the gland in your body that is not working correctly is getting a little worse over time. Here is my experience - give it a try if you can:
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After 9 years of trying different foods and logging EVERYTHING I ate, I found sugar (and to a lesser degree, salt – i.e. dehydration) was triggering my Afib. Doctors don't want to hear this - there is no money in telling patients to eat less sugar. Each person has a different sugar threshold - and it changes as you get older, so you need to count every gram of sugar you eat every day (including natural sugars in fruits, etc.). My tolerance level was 190 grams of sugar per day 8 years ago, 85 grams a year and a half ago, and 60 grams today, so AFIB episodes are more frequent and last longer (this is why all doctors agree that afib gets worse as you get older). If you keep your intake of sugar below your threshold level your AFIB will not happen again (easier said than done of course). It's not the food - it's the sugar (or salt - see below) IN the food that's causing your problems. Try it and you will see - should only take you 1 or 2 months of trial-and-error to find your threshold level. And for the record - ALL sugars are treated the same (honey, refined, agave, natural sugars in fruits, etc.). I successfully triggered AFIB by eating a bunch of plums and peaches one day just to test it out. In addition, I have noticed that moderate (afternoon) exercise (7-mile bike ride or 5-mile hike in the park) often puts my Afib heart back in to normal rhythm a couple hours later. Don’t know why – perhaps you burn off the excess sugars in your blood/muscles or sweat out excess salt?? I also found that strenuous exercise does no good – perhaps you make yourself dehydrated??
I'm pretty sure that Afib is caused by a gland(s) - like the Pancreas, Thyroid (sends signals to the heart to increase speed or strength of beat), Adrenal Gland (sends signals to increase heart rate), Sympathetic Nerve (increases heart rate) or Vagus Nerve (decreases heart rate), Hypothalamus Gland or others - or an organ that, in our old age, is not working well anymore and excess sugar or dehydration is causing them to send mixed signals to the heart - for example telling the heart to beat fast and slow at the same time - which causes it to skip beats, etc. I can't prove that (and neither can my doctors), but I have a very strong suspicion that that is the root cause of our Afib problems. I am working on this with a Nutritionist and hope to get some definitive proof in a few months.
Also, in addition to sugar, if you are dehydrated - this will trigger AFIB as well. It seems (but I have no proof of this) that a little uptick of salt in your blood is being treated the same as an uptick of sugar - both cause AFIB episodes. (I’m not a doctor – it may be the sugar in your muscles/organs and not in your blood, don’t know). In any case you have to keep hydrated, and not eat too much salt. The root problem is that our bodies are not processing sugar/salt properly and no doctor knows why, but the AFIB seems to be a symptom of this and not the primary problem, but medicine is not advanced enough to know the core reason that causes AFIB at this time. You can have a healthy heart and still have Afib – something inside us is triggering it when we eat too much sugar or get (even a little) dehydrated. Find out the core reason for this and you will be a millionaire and make the cover of Time Magazine! Good luck! - Rick Hyer
PS – there is a study backing up this data you can view at:
I have always thought all Afib patients have a similar problem happening within our bodies that is causing our afib problems. After 17 years of watching my afib come and go, and logging everything I eat, I am pretty sure our hearts are fine but we have a problem with a gland(s) or an organ(s). For example:
1). The Sympathetic Nerve INCREASES the heart rate.
2). The Vagus Nerve DECREASES the heart rate.
3). The Adrenal Gland INCREASES the heart rate (with adrenaline), heightens
anxiety.
4). The Thyroid Gland both DECREASES and INCREASES the heart rate, and
heart strength.
5). The Hypothalamus Gland produces hormones directing other glands to do
stuff.
6). The Pancreas processes sugar, which cause other glands to do different
things.
7). To further complicate the situation, when one gland stops working, sometimes another gland will try to pick up the slack.
Plus - there are lots more glands in the body, plus don't forget the organs, which (some) also influence the heart rate, for example:
Medulla in Brain: Heart rate can be increased or decreased by impulses brought to
the SAN or AVN by nerves originating in the medulla oblongata of the brain.
The endocrine system of gland processing is complex – it’s a wonder it works at all.
For a neat picture/information on all the glands, check out this URL: (Ctrl and click):
Medications, chemicals, foods etc. can all cause our glands and organs to mis-fire. For me, sugar (and dehydration) are causing some gland(s) or organ(s) in my body to mis-fire, sending mixed signals to the heart - for example, telling the heart to beat fast and slow at the same time. This would explain why a healthy heart sometimes beats abnormally. It also explains why my heart afibs when I eat too much sugar, because the heart does NOT use sugar to contract (uses fatty acids) so obviously sugar/dehydration is causing something to misfire which in turn is directing the heart to afib. In our old age, I suspect a gland or organ is not working as it used to, causing afib or other heart palpitations. Unfortunately doctors and researchers don't know what it is (yet). In the meantime we will have to listen to our bodies VERY closely to see what is causing our problems and reduce or eliminate our afib by reducing what triggers it.
Thanks, sugarisit. First off, I take in very, very little sugar. However, your comments about salt has me wondering. Both my sodium and chloride levels are very low even though I don't spare the salt. You got me to wondering if my glands are somehow storing the salt. I'm going to try to reduce my salt intake and see what happens.
Also, I love your explanations of what each gland does.
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