I am a 47 YO male. No health problems apart from higher than normal cholesterol levels whilst only being moderately overweight.
I bought a good digital watch with what seems to be an accurate heart rate monitor and noticed the resting heart rate consistently below 60. I went to see the doctor and she took a reading at 60. I got an ECG done and I think the reading was the same but there was no problems with the ECG. But maybe, my heart rate was higher at the doctors due to nerves etc? My resting heart rate, according to my watch has dropped to about 47.
On occasion i do get dizzy but it is rare, and maybe due to irregular diet patterns. I tend to experiment with different fasting diets like 5-2 diet and no breakfast etc.
Do I have BradyCardia? Is it reversible?
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hghealth
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A fit athlete can have a low pulse rate. If your ECG was OK and your not having any problems/symptoms then things should be fine. If you diet and skip meals which you say you do, then you may have answered your own question , re making you dizzy.
I have high blood pressure which is well controlled, and my home readings are fine, but as soon as I get to the surgery for a check up my b/pressure shoots through the roof., same with you re your heart rate.
I don't think anyone on here can tell you that you have bradycardia, however , someone on this good site may able to advice you further.
a watch can only measure blood flow through the skin, it isn't a very good way to measure heart rate in a consistent manner. If you are concerned you should make another appointment with your GP and discuss your worries with them.
thx, but this is quite an expensive watch and I have tried some manual checks and it seems pretty accurate. Which is why I'm worried. A resting heart rate of 47 is too low. I have not been exercising as much over the past few years so that should actually have an upwards effect rather than the lowering effect of regular exercise.
Hello. We are not trained medical professionals and so we cannot answer your question, you will need to talk to your GP and a cardiologist for a diagnosis.
As for your wrist device, they are getting better but if you were to use a different device you might get a different result. Rather than taking the number as an absolute, I think you look at the trends they are giving you. If you continue to be concerned by very low numbers, make that GP appointment.
FYI, my resting heart rate is a medication induced 52 bpm and nobody is too concerned with that.
I believe that Bradycardia is just a term for a Low heart Rate. I know on my Hospital ECG it will actually print Bradycardia along with all the LBBB pattern etc, so it is difficult to say it is a missed diagnosis. If you are concerned stock answer is to see your GP!!
I had strange symptoms after which I had an angiogram - (clear arteries), not bad cholesterol etc, I even saw a specialist who told me I had indigestion and almost dismissed me. Fortunately, I had a determined GP who eventually sent me for an echo. The diagnosis was dilated cardiomyopathy and the medical profession soon jumped and realised I had a life threatening condition. By the way I am a non smoking, vegetarian, not overweight and fit!
Nearly a year later I take lots of medication but feel fantastic. I still work and have been lucky enough to continue almost as I was. I am not a runner but exercise and keep busy.
Do insist on an echo. It's the only way to diagnose certain conditions. Go with your gut feeling as often it is correct.
Hi reading your post maybe you can help. My husband has B12 defficency being treated.
However the uk asked me to take his blood pressure over a week.
Which is good average 129/83.
I also did pulse it's all over the place. 50 61 52 46 48 52 . He gets cold hands cold feet, lack of energy weakness and most importantly struggles with breathing is this bracycardia?
He has echo sound test which was fine. He was attended by your paramedics a year ago they said it was bradycardia. However A&E monitered him and a doctor told us that the specialist said nothing wrong. They blamed paramedics for putting tracers on wrong.
Luckily I know one he said no they were out on correctly. Twice. His partner has 20 years experience.
Plus there was another two paramedics in bedroom watching as back up. Is this Bracycardia? Thanks.
Good luck! My Echo in December shows that I have apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy & 2 leaky heart valves, as well as bradycardia & arrythmia. Now I'm finding it very difficult to get travel insurance to cover those conditions (although they will cover my angina....at a high cost.) Have you managed to get single trip Europe or annual Europe travel insurance? If so...which company did you find best?
I too noticed low heart rate readings on a blood pressure monitor and had the same thing slightly above 60 when seeing doctor and on ECG. However I persisted and took regular readings often in the 40s and got docs to order 24 monitor. The first one had some low readings and averaged 60 with no symptoms. The doctor agreed it should be kept an eye on. Had another 12 months later and the average was 53 but still no obvious symptoms so cardiologist said repeat in 12 months which would have been November last year. In August I started to feel very unwell lighth eaded and dizzy. No energy and very lethargic basically I was fit for nothing. I got my appointment brought forward and had a further 24 ECG. The average was 41 I was diagnosed with sick sinus syndrome and had a pacemaker fitted four days later. I would try not to worry but if you are having symptoms see your doctor. I thought they took more notice when I had recorded the low readings and showed them. Good luck
Hi HeatherForanSmith what tests did the do to diagnose Sick Sinus? My heart rate dips to 36 especially in the morning. I have no energy, dizzy etc. Had 3 NStemis and clear angiogram but got another booked next week to look at small vessels.
Go to a lloyds chemist and buy a blood pressure device, then for a week take your blood pressure ( you get pulse rate too)at same time morning and night, write down the bp and pulse (120/80 & 60) and then make an appointment with your gp surgery and discuss it with them.
One point try to first test your blood pressure on each arm, then use the arm that gives the highest to take the reading.
At least it will give you proof and do I g it at home when calm will be more reliable.
Many people live with a heart rate in the 40s ,which although is on the low side ,as long as you are feeling ok is acceptable. If the one off ECG was ok and didn't raise any alarm with the people who reviewed it, I would be reassured. However, if you do have symptoms such as feeling you're going to faint/blackout, then this would justify going back to the GP to arrange the 24 monitoring that some of the others have mentioned. It provides more specific information,and from there further action would be taken if justified.
Sometimes investigations can induce further anxieties,so I would advise you take this route in the first instance. Bradycardia just means that the heart rate is less than 60 beats per minute. As long as your ECG is showing a normal waveform,this is ok.
With my cardiac nurse hat on,your opening sentence mentioned high cholesterol and being overweight! These are 2 modifiable risk factors associated with heart and circulatory disease,so if you are able to make some changes there,that would have a bearing on developing problems in the future. Your diet does sound quite erratic,so you may want to have a look at our website- bhf.org.uk, on how to follow a heart friendly diet and to reduce your cholesterol levels effectively.
If you want to talk things through further, feel free to call our heart helpline to speak to one of the nurses. The number is 0300-330-3311. There is someone to talk to Monday- Friday 9-5.
While I agree with much of the explanation and advice you have given to hghealth , I think your link to modifiable risk factors could be misinterpreted.
Being overweight and having high cholesterol are indeed in most cases due to lifestyle choices which can increase one’s risk of future heart disease. However, they are not directly linked to Bradycardia unless one is extremely overweight causing a conduction deficit.
While I recognise the importance of education and awareness of individual risk factors, people might be disencouraged to seek further medical advice if they perceive the problem to be self induced.
My healthy 40 year old daughter has had a bradycardia of 40-60 beats per minute since she was a teenager. She is not athletic but is kept fit running after 3 children. Her systolic BP is also <90 which coupled with bradycardia caused concern during child birth. Nevertheless, no abnormality was noted on her ECG and she did not have any associated symptoms, so the cardiologist reviewing her ECG’s said that there was nothing to worry about.
I on the other hand am a firm believer that our bodies communicate to us when there is a problem. Perhaps the real cause of her bradycardia will not materialise for some years, however, I do believe a reason for it will eventually emerge.
You mentioned erratic dieting, this could be interfering with your metabolism subsequently resulting in a reduced metabolic rate with possible bradycardia. Have you had your thyroid function checked?
thx. I have heard that thyroid can be a cause of Bradycardia so I think I will get that checked. The other issue I have had over the past 5 years or so is lack of sleep and intermittent insomnia. I was also diagnosed as having high cholesterol. I've never really been overweight but not currently at my ideal weight
Insomnia can also be linked to thyroid issues and is also common with depression . I suggest trying to get a rhythm going with your meals before embarking on a diet and try to go to bed at a regular time every night and don’t watch TV or look at the computer screen for at least an hour before you go to bed.
If that doesn’t work, get your thyroid checked. Some doctors only check TSH (thyroid stimmulating hormone) which is a feedback mechanism which really doesn’t tell them anything about how your thyroid gland is functioning. Ask for free T3 and Free T4 to be tested which will give you the bigger picture. If they refuse, you can get this test done privately. I suggest you look on Thyroid UK website for more information .
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