Your experiences with swollen ankles/fluid retention, please

[Buffafly]

Hi all, first thing to say is I shall be consulting my GP asap but wanted to know what solutions have been found for others with this problem.

Whenever heat goes up above above a certain point I get swollen ankles, feet and legs and in spite of doing the usual recommended things the usual outcome is AF - now on my second episode of 5 day AF in a month which of course sorted the fluid retention! I have worked out it is fluid retention and not just poor leg circulation because I put on 1/2 kilos in a day. I asked a GP for a prescription for a diuretic once because we were going on holiday but she was a stand in and shooed me off, telling me diuretics are bad for the kidneys 🙄 My GP was very cross and said she wanted to know if it happened again. Now I can see there is a pattern so hoping my GP will come up with a plan or a cardiologist consultation (we can always hope…..)

[10gingercats]

Well I had a very serious problem with swollenlegs and thighs which indicated fluid around my heart .Hospital doc. prescribed Spironolactone which did the trick very quicklyThe water just ran out of me and I could walk again and felt comfortable. ....and it has not come back.Furosimide alone did not work.I now take a very small dose of both daily under prescrioption and I am ok.

[mav7]

What medications are you taking, Buffafly ?

Likely the cause. Do some research on the 'net, but what I read said diuretics do not help if caused by AFib medications. Advice was to consult with your cardiologist/EP for lowering medication or changing to another.

[Buffafly in reply to mav7]

Thanks Mav, yes I take Diltiazem 180, used to be 120 but my GP raised it to slow my HR especially during episodes. I used to take an extra 60mg if I had fast AF but she didn’t like that idea! So yes diltiazem is notorious for causing swollen ankles but I don’t usually have problem unless overtired or too hot. I also take Candesartan 8mg, checked my BP today and it’s way lower than usual but I know a home BP monitor doesn’t work well with AF. My medication options are extremely limited, cardiologist suggested Amiodarone but I refused, also pacemaker but that’s on ice. My cardiologist’s last comment was that I am ‘between a rock and a hard place’ - right…..

[belindalore in reply to Buffafly]

Can you drink any herbal teas? Peppermint tea is diuretic. Chamomile and ginger. Parsley. All diuretic. One caution. They can also lower blood pressure some. But then so do prescription meds. I use peppermint tea. But sip it through the day. I don't gulp a cup at once. Sometimes it's trial and error. Hope you find something that helps. I see joy 73 said eat bananas. Yes. Potassium is a diuretic. And I agree with her, they mess up our electrolytes. Ho hum. Always something isn't it. 😕 Take care. Can you sleep with your legs elevated at night?

[Buffafly in reply to belindalore]

Thanks for that, I hadn’t thought of herbal teas. And didn’t know bananas were diuretic though I knew they are good for potassium levels. I was shocked when I took my BP yesterday - thought there was some mistake and kept repeating measurement as some came out in the 90s and my Omron wasn’t happy, a couple of times it just gave up in the middle of measuring. So I didn’t take my BP meds today but will take my diltiazem although that also lowers bp but doing a great job of keeping my HR mostly under 100.

I can’t sleep with my legs elevated because I can’t sleep flat on my back, also I can feel my heartbeat too much on my back - I’ve got metalwork in my back and it seems to act as a sounding board 😬 I’m not sure it would help because my chest gets a bit wheezy overnight so I think the fluid is just ‘relocating’ whereas I want it gone!

But grateful for all suggestions 💞

[belindalore in reply to Buffafly]

It's the potassium that's diuretic. But have to be careful because eating bananas or anything with potassium can lower BP. It's such a conundrum trying to figure out what to do.

[Palpman in reply to Buffafly]

BP in the 90's??? Is that systolic or diastolic? A single number can be either.

[Buffafly in reply to Palpman]

95 systolic 64 diastolic - 90/60 is the point at which A&E thinks about cardioversion. Now improved to 108/68 average without BP meds. But still feel very wishywashy

[Palpman in reply to Buffafly]

Your 110/70 is the ideal BP we all aim for.90/60 is on the bottom limit of normal BP.

[Buffafly in reply to Palpman]

Wonderful……but I’m not used to it after life on 132/66 and I would prefer it not being achieved by AF 😕

[Palpman in reply to Buffafly]

A bit high but no GP will be concerned as it is considered Pre High BP.

[Buffafly in reply to Palpman]

My GP is happy with that, they prefer older people to have higher BP apparently.

[Hardjuice]

I’m in the same boat it’s the meds Heading for pace and ablate

Could get a pair of jeans to fit recently

Peed me off

[Buffafly in reply to Hardjuice]

I know it’s really bad if my favourite trousers suddenly get too tight around the waist 😬

[JOY2THEWORLD49]

HiDierectics are nasty.

You lose water yes but you lose elements like potassium, B12, Magnesium.

Keep cool and put feet up overnight.

When I was on Tucan Bus Tour of Sth America I had ankles and wrists up.

Difficult to walk!

Eat bananas.

cheers JOY 73 (NZ)

[sleeksheep]

I was on 5mg Perindopril and 240mg Diltiazem CD and used to get pillows on the top of my feet with slight swelling around the ankles . My Dr. switched me to 80mg Telmisartan quite a few years ago now and I,ve never had any swelling since. Still take 240mg Diltiazem.

The reason she switched my BP medication was Perindopril is associated with a higher risk of lung cancer in those with a family history of it.

Telmisartan and Candesartan are both ARB's but Telmisartan has an added benefit of reducing fasting plasma insulin levels which in my case is a big plus.

[Buffafly in reply to sleeksheep]

Thanks, obviously this is a bit complicated!

[sleeksheep in reply to Buffafly]

It does complicate matters further if even switching between the same drug to other manufacturers has side effects. I take Teltartan ( Arrow Labs )but was switched to Micardis (Boehringer Ingelheim ) and had erratic blood pressure and nausea , soon as I was switched back it stabilized within hours.

The Micardis was sold as "new formulation" , so its all to do with the other ingredients they add to Telmisartan in the capsule.

[Buffafly in reply to sleeksheep]

I had the same experience with diltiazem, Adizem was awful but Slozem was fine.

[Tapanac]

My cardiologist wanted to stop my moduretic as he said diuretics weren’t good for the kidneys. My EP said the same. However my legs ankles and feet were so swollen that they restarted me on furosemide (? Spelling)

When I was taken into hospital with afib/tachycardia the consultant changed me to Co-amilofruse as each time I’ve had blood tests I was dehydrated, low in potassium, magnesium and kidneys not good

Again have stopped diuretics and just take them if my feet ankles and legs are really bad - which in this warm weather isn’t helping. It is so nice to see blue skies and sunshine though isn’t it

Good luck

[SuziElley]

I have a prescription for 20mg furosemide and take as and when needed. (My GP trusts me 👍🏻) I take it daily for about a week and find that sorts it until the next time. Being on diltiazem doesn’t help as that causes fluid retention. I just plod on until it flares up again. My GP, bless him, has put the furosemide on repeat for me so I don’t have to get hold of him every time I need it now.

[Buffafly in reply to SuziElley]

That seems a good plan. It’s frustrating seeing your feet puffing up and knowing it’s probably going to be ‘cured’ by an episode of AF. I’ve been told my kidney function is excellent so I’m hoping that gives me some leeway.

[Ducky2003]

Diltiazem caused mine so I have some 40mg Furosemide to take if needed. As I've been on a higher dose for about 4 months now, it seems to have settled and stopped doing it now but I would only take the Furosemide on non work days, for obvious reasons but thus weather won't help.😁.

[Nigel2000]

That sounds awful. No suggestions except to eat strawberries or watermelon until you get to the doctor. I hope this clears up soon.

[Buffafly in reply to Nigel2000]

Oooh, watermelon! I do like all these foodie suggestions 😋 Actually I don’t have swollen ankles at this moment because my shaky heart is swooshing fluid out pretty quickly, my concern is to prevent a reoccurrence though since I seem stuck in AF for now I have time to get medical advice, unfortunately. Thanks for the sympathy 💕