BPM and AF : So I go in and out of AF does BPM matter ???

[mjm1971]

Hi All

one of many questions I will no doubt post as I'm new to all this .

i go in and out of AF and I don't really suffer when I'm in AF ( anxiety biggest issue when in )

im on 1.25mg bisoprolol and my resting BPM is 52 and can get below 50 , when I'm in AF it goes to anything between 70 and 95 bpm on average .

so my question is ,

Am i at less risk of other complications than those unfortunate enough to have higher rates while in AF , are you at more risk of a stroke if your BPM is higher while in AF

in regards to the stroke I don't have any other stroke risk factors and score 0 on the risk factors from the doctors and cardiologist on the tests.

Sorry if that's a silly question , but I go on theory the only silly question is the one you don't ask .

thanks in advance for the responses

Matt

[BobD Volunteer]

My take only and I am not medicalaly trained Matt.

Normal heart rate is between 60 and 100 and within those parameters doctors would not generally treat you were it not for AF.

Some people have lower resting heart rates ( I once found an old lifeboat man with a rate of 36 who was perfectly fit and happy) especialy athletes.

AF does not alone shorten life so long as rate is well controlled (as is yours) .

Are you are at less risk than those with high rate (above 150)? Yes in terms of damage to your heart such as enlarged atrium.

Are you at less stroke risk? It has been said that it is less the AF that causes the risk than the company it keeps (those factors in your Chads2Vasc score) so with a score of zero you are already at less risk than somebody with a score of 2.

Nothing is ever simple!

As you imply, at this stage in your AF journey anxiety is the prime problem and as I often say knowledge is power so keep asking and keep on reading the AF Association website information.

[Hidden]

Hi! Matt, if you look at the comments I have written, you will see that my values for resting HR (48 to 52) and HR when having an AF bout (80-90) are exactly the same as yours. There are some other people at the forum with not exactly the same values, but with really similar ones.I also have no symptoms when in AF, apart of irregular HR and some shivering in the chest.

I attribute my situation to well trained heart in my young days and to my low body weight, meaning that the heart, despite reduced blood flow-rate when in AF, still covers the needs of the body without problems. I am almost 69, not on drugs and not on anticoagulants. I firmly believe that AF is not so rare as people may imagine - there are many people who, because of no symptoms and no extremely high HR, never get diagnosed. So, calm down and go ahead, there is no need for anxiety...

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Exactly the same situation, except age (77).😀

[mjm1971 in reply to Hidden]

Hi , Thais for the response , can I ask how long you have known you have AF and why you don’t take any meds or have not had an ablation please ?

[Hidden in reply to mjm1971]

I live with AF for about 10+ years. There was a long period where I had some morning symptoms, but did not know, at all, what it could be. Only later, after I started reading this forum, I realized that it was a silent AF in the night and in the morning, lasting up to 9-10 o'clock. Never visited GP, never got officially diagnosed, never was prescribed medication and anticoagulants. Why!? I do not trust drug producers, they would do anything, just to sell the medication. The story about 5 times larger risk of stroke when in AF was dealt with in several occasions in this forum, so you can find it via search function. I even read an article, long ago, where the result was that the risk of stroke is the same, in AF and without it, but, unfortunately, can not find it again to provide the link. Never mind...maybe removed from big pharma, as not to spoil the game, lol,

BTW, where were anticoagulants for thousands and thousands of human generations until now!? I know well the story about a very debilitating stroke, the problems for the family etc. I do not buy it, it is my decision, even if my day is to be tomorrow...

[Globe-J]

Hi,

I too suffered from AF, have been free of it over four years. There are non-pharmaceutic options, perhaps worth exploring.

Best wishes

J (-:

[beardy_chris]

I had fairly asymptomatic AF for a number of years before I got diagnosed. I only got diagnosed when I started passing out (syncope). You may not need any drugs until it starts getting worse - and experience suggests it will get worse - the only question is over what time period? It might be weeks or decades. You probably will need anti-coagulants at some point and you may benefit from some other drugs - your Cardiologist or Electrophysiologist (EP) will advise. I would recommend taking their advice over anything you might read on here

[S11m]

They told me that Bradycardia (slow pulse rate) was more likely to kill me than AF.

When I was a young athlete, a pulse rate of 30 BPM was OK - when I had AF it was not, and, sometimes, I was waking up paralysed from the elids down.

Do you wake up feeling rough?

Have you checked your sleeping pulse rate? or your sleeping blood oxygen saturation? (hypoxia)

Do you get postural hypotension? (feeling faint when you stand up)

I have had three cardioversions, two catheter ablations, and two pacemakers - and I still get a little postural hypotension and hypoxia.

[seasicksurf]

AF is an abnormal heart rhythm, like an engine not firing on all cylinders, misfiring and sputtering. The concern with AF is that the misfiring of the heart doesn't clear all the blood each beat, leading to pooling of the blood, especially in the left atrial appendage. This pooling and temporary stagnation of blood flow can lead to the clotting of blood and then movement of this clot into your circulatory system, and ultimately a blockage somewhere that is serious (lungs or brain). The fact that your heartrate is slower during AF than most, wouldn't seem to make a difference with respect to the problems that could develop.