Irregular palpitations

[Youngest]

Hi all. I've recently been diagnosed with PAF after 2 years. I'm on 1.25mg bisoprotol and apixaban. I had a telephone appt with cardiologist and getting a novacor monitor fitted for 7 days to monitor my heart. Also waiting for echocardiogram. Since being on medication my HR hasn't gone above 100. However I have had frequent long episodes of palpitations. I have a cheap heart monitor which shows the fluctuations and advices irregular heartbeat detected but my HR is between 50 and 90! Its same feeling as PAF but not high rates. Do I need to tell anyone or just wait? Not sure if its anything to worry about or not. Thanks

[Finvola]

Those could be ectopics or out of place beats which all of us have at some time - some can feel them mightily, others not. They are considered to be harmless and occur during normal beats as a quick early beat, followed by a slight pause, followed by a huge thump as the heart returns to normal beating.

They can be lessened or stopped by slow, deep belly breathing - breathe in using your belly muscles to a count of 5, then out to a count of 5. Repeat for at least 5 minutes - I usually do 10 minutes and it stops mine most of the time.

[Youngest in reply to Finvola]

Hi Finvola. I was diagnosed with ectopic some years ago but this feels different. With my ectopic I can feel the shirt or missing beat but these episodes are just so irregular and feel all over the place. I will try deep breathing etc. I do try and deep cough them out but it doesn't work. Thanks

[Tudyumdin in reply to Youngest]

Hi my heart rate is all over the place ,up to 145sometimes then down to 116 doctor want them to go down to 70 but only happened twice so far .I am on tablets to slow heart rate can two a day but not made huge amount of difference, I am also on Axiban and iron .thanks

[baba]

It could be Atrial Fibrillation, rates are not always fast, you medication could be keeping the heart rate down.

I'm in permanent AF with similar rates, on no medication apart from anticoagulant.

[Youngest in reply to baba]

Hi Baba I did wonder that as it feels very similar as it beats all over the place but thought AF was just high and fast. Was thinking of investing in a kardia mobile. How do you manage? Thanks.

[baba in reply to Youngest]

See what your monitor shows. I have the original Kardia, not the newer 6 lead, it is great if you want to see what your heart is doing or to show your doctors. You will need a smartphone or tablet computer to download the App.

Permanent AF is much easier than paroxysmal. I have no symptoms now except breathlessness when walking uphill. I was very symptomatic with paroxysmal even though heart rates were never very high. The prescribed medications didn't agree with me, made me feel worse than the AF.

Hope you get sorted soon.

[Youngest in reply to baba]

Thanks Baba

[Hidden]

You could be in AF-I had an episode a couple of days ago where the heart only went to 75bpm maximum. Anything new or unusual should be reported to your doctor. Even if these are ectopics they could be a prelude to an AF episode. If you get a Kardia (either the single lead or 6L) it will reliably determine whether you are in AF (the message says ‘possible AF’ if you are). In other words investigation is urgently needed.

[Ellie-Ann]

When I asked my Dr about bpm he just replied “anything under 100bpm is resting rate and 120 bpm is ok for a walking rate.”Hope that helps.

I’m on bisoprolol and Apaxiban too.

If your worried about excess bpm then take as your top worry number 220 minus your age. Good luck. Hope all goes well.

[Visigoth]

For a quick answer, you could download the FibriCheck app (you can do a free trial without paying) and test yourself a few times on that. It can tell the difference between AF and different kinds of ectopics, and you can also email the report to your cardiologist .