Hello, does anybody else's blood pressure get high when in afib? I had to call the paramedics yesterday because when I took my BP it was 143/112 with HR of 54 and it kind of freaked me out why it was so high with a normal HR, so I took it again after a few minutes and it was 150/101 with a HR of 101, waited a few minutes more and it was 155/105 and HR 109, so I decided to call for help. Paramedics came hooked me up to an ekg machine, took my BP and it was 150/95 but they said heart function was normal but that I was in afib. While I still had the BP cuff on a few minutes later BP dropped to 117/81. They said I didn't need to go to the ER and to just take my Blood Pressure meds and I should be all right. When they left I took BP again and it was 150/90. I've had paroxysmal afib for 32+years and I still can't understand it's up's and down's. Has anybody else had episodes similar to this? Thank You
afib and blood pressure: Hello, does... - Atrial Fibrillati...
afib and blood pressure
Blood Pressure variations to the degree you describe are normal and not dangerous. It is also very difficult to get accurate Blood Pressure readings while in afib. You should make an appointment with your internest or cardiologist to sort any potential problems. If you have any acute symptoms you should go to the Emergency Department. Best, etheral
Thank You for easing my anxiety and do you know I've tried for 3 months to get my OLD Dr to help me with this but all he would say is keep doing what you're doing. Now I have a video appointment with my new Dr on the 13th. Hopefully he will be able offer some type of solution for this. Thanks again for your quick response. Have a Blessed Day.
Not mine. When mine kicked off my BP was normal 136/80 ish but over the next few hours dropped to 76/50 and by the time I got to A & E an hour or so later my HR was clocked at 156 bpm.
Sometimes mine will drop as well. I hope you're all right and they can sort it out. I can't, as hard as I try to, figure this afib out. As long as I've had it, it's still an, unpredictable, anxiety producing condition.
Thank you. I omitted to say mine was back in January 2010. I opted for long term drugs ( for life) and getting advice from a Nutritionist on diet. Combined the two and I am now well free of the demon. Still watch my diet and still take my drugs day in, day out ..... boring !
Have you not tried to rest your drugs for a while to see if you need them? I’ve never been medicated for mine but after a run when it was frequent, I read that it wasn’t going to kill me. It stopped for nearly 2 years and I now have the occasional bout which rights itself with no help from me lol.
Before my old Dr. left to go live in San Francisco I had been on 20mg Lisinopril once a day for15 years or so years and had BP usually around 90s/70s and my new Dr. called me one night and told me to stop BP meds altogether which I did and that's when my BP started bouncing all around after about 3 days. Thankfully I will have a visit with a new Dr. next week. Glad to hear you've found a key to one of afibs many idiosyncrasies.
Hello there, sorry you are having bp issues. I have been told this is what happens with afib. The blood can pool and then surge, causing the wild variations. An amendment to some of your medications might even things out a bit so perhaps discuss with your gp or specialist. Do you take 3 readings of your bp with a minute between? I've been advised to go by the middle reading. Good luck
Anything that affects the heart rate will affect your BLOOD pressure as the two are related. As the HR is fluctuating with AF so the BP will hop around too. Hopes this helps x
Thank You, it does!! Have a Wonderful Day!
It is normal to get big fluctuations during AF - mine would typically go up during AF and then drop like a stone afterwards. It's very alarming and - of course- the more anxious you get, the higher your BP will go. Those rates btw are not too bad - I've had higher and quite a lot lower, which i hate btw. Sounds like the paramedics were sensible. Has your BP normalised now?
Yes it's now 118/73 with HR 57. It's reassuring that I'm not the only one that has this problem as it sounds that what I'm reading is identical to yours. I took a 10mg tablet at 10 pm one night and woke up with BP of 75/53, never again. Thank You So Much for your reply. Have a Blessed Day!!
every time I went to afib or flutter my BP in the ER was sky high,sometimes 190/115 and the more often they took it the higher it went.My anxiety is big part of it in these instances.At home at second reading I run usually 110/80,mind is big part of it too
I agree with you I also have anxiety attacks and am rated 100% disability due to ptsd from the war and I think that is a HUGE part of my afib episodes as well. The ER DRs. also say that as well but it's hard for me to implement that mind set as I live alone and have no relatives or friends so Worry comes pretty easy for me. I don't like this afib at all!!! Thank You for replying, it is helpful. Have a Beautiful Day!!!!
Hi,
I don't know if this helps, but I had a serious BP run after having Chinese food. About an hour after eating fairly rich, my BP spiked up into the 170/100 190/120.
I was convinced that I was going to need to go to the ER. My wife talked me down, and deep breathing and drinking lots of water brought it down.
Most of the time when I am in AF my BP is low as others described above. I do think more salt in my diet brings my BP up, and so I drink some water.
Hope you feel better
I hope you're doing well now. I try and watch how I eat and have been a vegetarian for 60+ years and try to use portion control, and with these in mind that's what really freaks me out when things like this happens. I find that SODIUM is a KILLER and causes afib episodes also. Thank You and watch the SALT, seems like everything is loaded with it, especially Fast and Vegetarian foods.
I’ve had Proxy AFib since 2006 and haven’t taken my blood pressure when in AFib for over a decade as it was all over the place .From one reading to the next some times the lower figure would be higher than the other ie 120/125 then the next reading just a minute later would be 135/90 . When NSR it’s was normally 105 to 130 over 60 to 75.
I was told once by an ER Dr. when I was brought to the Emergency Room when my BP was 166/120 that I really shouldn't be too concerned because I was on Apixaban to prevent stroke due to this. It's easy to agree when told by a Dr. when he's in front of you but when you get home and are alone and it happens anxiety and panic kick in. I was diagnosed with afib in 1992 and up until about 7 years ago when I was taken off of Tikosyn (Dofetelide) and put on amiodarone that all these things started to have an effect on me. Thank You for sharing your events as I will try and remember next attack I get. Have a Great Day!!!
When l was first diagnosed with this monster, my blood pressure would go sky high because my anxiety went through the roof. It scared me until l accepted what was happening and learned to relax. When l eventually did (and it takes time) my blood pressure and pulse were ok and it lessened the severity of my attacks. Always tell yourself, when you get an attack, that it is not life threatening and it won’t kill you. I think it’s anxiety that is the culprit here. You have had AF for a long time which is proof that it doesn’t kill you. I think the time to worry about blood pressure is if it goes high every day, or won’t come down. It’s normal for it to fluctuate especially when we are anxious or worried. If you have chest pains or feel dizzy then get help. It’s ok for us to speculate, but only you know how you feel.
Thank You So Much for your re-assuring words which I know are correct. It's just hard to understand it when you've been told many times by Drs. and EPs. and others that you know they are right such as yourself but when that small little bit of doubt springs up and begins to take over like it does with me, after all I should just reason it out; What's the worst that can happen. Thank You once again and have a Blessed Day!!!!
The higher my pulse rate goes, the lower my blood pressure goes.
Mine does that as well, hence the anxiety and concern. Thank You for response. Have a Blessed Day!!
Thank you. All the best.
My BP was 209/106 when in AFib and called ambulance. Had been diagnosed with AFib about two weeks prior to this. Taken into hospital and kept in for five days having also had a mild heart attack as well! Yes, BP can increase with AF!
That does seem high I hope you're OK now. I was at ER with 210/120 and Dr. said he'd seen worse and eventual prognosis was to go home and "ride it out" which I did. Anxiety is my BIG problem though. Thank You and have a GREAT Day!!
Strange that medics think that. The paramedic actually asked me if I wanted to go to hospital with my BP that high and thank goodness I chose to go, as I had had a heart attack! I also suffer from anxiety and was prescribed diazapam for a while which I only took every now and again, but doctors won't prescribe it long term, but it's the only thing that stops palpitations and worry! It's quite extraordinary when you find something that helps they turn you into a 76 year old junkie who has never taken drugs in her life!!
I don't think that you have to worry too much about occasional readings of, say, 150/100. If it stays up there for days or weeks - or gets much higher- then you need to see your doctor to review your medication.
My wife has Afib and has had it for many years. We found that, when the Afib wasn't well controlled, she got extremely variable readings on her BP monitor. The simpler, less extensive monitors don't seem to be able to cope with the heart rate variability. Traditional stethoscope measurements by a doctor or nurse tended to be more consistent.
She bought a more expensive meter that automatically takes an average of three readings and flags up errors if it does not think that it can get a good reading.
That seems to give more consistent readings and she tends to average about 135/80 (sitting down and relaxing) but does, for no obvious reason, get occasional (say every month or two) repeated readings of around 150/100.
So, you probably want to keep a record of all your readings (date, time, pressure and heart rate) to see what the average is and take that record to your doctor appointments so that he/she can see what is happening long term. That might avoid you being placed on too high a BP medicine dose based on a few readings by the doctor. Excessively low pressure can be a danger in itself.
Thank You so much for reply. I' ve got several monitors from Omron 10 series to the one the Hospital gave me (which reads higher than the other's) but everything was fine until new Dr. told me to stop taking my BP meds, which I did and now it's all over the place. He has prescribed three different strengths, it's like he's experimenting with my health which was fine for 15-20 years until I saw him. I sound's as though your wife is getting good medical care and she's adjusted well to her med's and that's a good thing. Thank You for your response and you and your wife have a Blessed Day!
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