Bisoprolol

[Hermanm]

Hi ,I'm a 62 year old man ,

4 years on from having my Aortic valve replaced, ( mechanical, On X)

I've been on warfarin from day one obviously, but I'm also taking Ramipril ,and Bisoprolol, and until a few months ago ,spironolactone. (I had to stop taking the latter due to feeling terrible,)

I've had several side effects ,including coughs,and aches and pains ,insomnia, and strange dreams,

But until recent that was all,

Then one evening, a couple of months ago,

I thought I could smell a very very strong aroma in our living room ,,my partner couldn't smell anything, and I had no idea what was going on!

Since then I've had several episodes , for want of a better description,

A bit like a migraine onset ,without the light show ,but with lots of strange confusing thoughts!

I also have very vivid dreams and nightmares ,and constantly feel drained ,with aches and pains all over ,especially in my kneck and shoulder,

I just want to know if anyone has had anything similar with this type of medication,

Or am I barking up the wrong tree?

Thanks for any help

[NathanBlau]

I would hesitate to comment on the aroma question ...... but I have certainly had almost constant vivid dreams since starting Bisoprolol at Xmas. Other aches and pains I attribute to the statins but that does not seem to be the cause for you.

[OldHippy]

Not sure about the aroma thing, but it wouldn't surprise me. I've suddenly lost my sense of smell altogether. I think it's so difficult to work out which medication is causing which side effect. However, what you describe with the strange migraine type onset symptoms, sounds possibly neurologically related. (I'm not a doctor, just a mere nurse.)

Vivid dreams? Oh yes!

[Harrison4]

Morning

My Dad had his aortic valve with a metal valve replaced in 1983 he died in 2015 at the age of 86

He had weird dreams after the operation also

There is also such a thing called the Ramapril cough

Which I get

And Statins affect my husband with his joints so much so it affects his walking

So I guess what I am saying is research each individual drug and then take it to your heart nurse or ask for an appt with your consultant

Hope this helps you 😊👍

[road2ruin]

Hello,

Bisoprolol is often associated with fatigue. I don't know if this has been medically proven as one of the side affects, but I was on it for years for the prevention of migranes. I then stopped it after I had my Aortic Valve replaced and started again a month ago. I am now extremely fatigued all the time. It could be a virus or something, tricky to work out!

[Challiefan]

I'm 65 and take 10mg Bisoprolol and 300mg Flecainide daily. I have not noticed any side effects such as those mentioned by you. However, Beta Blockers (Bisoprolol) are known to potentially make the symptoms of Asthma worse. That's the case for me.

[Dockdog]

Hi Hermanm,

Well you are not alone and I don't mean in the spooky sense. Some of the meds can play tricks on us I am sure. Like you I take Bisopropol and other goodies to keep the pump working and everything else. I too have from time to time smelt strange things and yes the dreams, well I am 75 but they are more suited to much younger men! On the other hand I know that I have a positive outlook and philosophy and maybe the daily pills are doing some great things. Aches and pains. who doesn't have them as we get a little older, fortunately they found I was allergic to statins because they really did set the muscles on fire and after some months the others all settled down. We are alive and relatively well that is the main thing! Take care..

[Qualipop]

I had horrific hallucinations on bisopralol especially when taken at night. Ask your GP if you can change the time of day.

[Hidden in reply to Qualipop]

That's interesting. I had 2 episodes of hallucinations last year and didn't associate it with bisoprolol. Thank you.

[Qualipop in reply to Hidden]

It may not be, could be anything but with me we ruled out everything else and it started immediately I changed taking them to evening.

[Raoudha]

Same bad dream I change timing and take 2.5 mg morning it s ok for dreams but my triglycerides is higher since betablokers

[seasider18]

Bisoprolol is not mentioned.

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

Dysosmia

Dysosmia (disordered smell perception) presents as either a distortion in the perceived quality of an odor (parosmia and cacosmia) or as the presence of a strange odor in the absence of actual odor stimulation (phantosmia or olfactory hallucinations). Most dysosmias reflect dynamic elements associated with degeneration (or, more rarely, regeneration) of the olfactory epithelium and remit over time. However, it is common for patients with anosmia to report that prior to the onset of anosmia they experienced a period of weeks or months when dysosmia was present. Extremely debilitating chronic dysosmias have been reported that have required surgical intervention, such as ablation of portions of the olfactory epithelium57 or removal of the olfactory bulbs.58 Most such cases present unilaterally. More commonly, dysosmias are part of the sequelae of events that occur after the olfactory nerve fibers have been partially damaged by upper respiratory infections, head trauma, nasal sinus disease, or other disorders. In the majority of these cases, marked smell loss does not accompany the dysosmic condition, implying that it requires a relatively intact sensory system for expression. In rare instances, dysosmias reflect aura‐like processes that are suggestive of central brain tumors or lesions, particularly lesions of the temporal lobe. In some cases, aura‐like dysosmias can be chronic or occur regularly without producing any evidence or any clear sign of seizure activity (although, as noted previously, inpatient EEGs may be needed to detect infrequent partial seizure episodes). A few psychiatric syndromes, such as olfactory reference syndrome, are also associated with dysosmic episodes, as are metabolic disturbances such as trimethylaminuria.

[Hermanm]

Hi again ,

Thanks to everyone who has left a message,

Just an update,

I decided to try a week ,without any medication, (Ramipril/Bisoprolol),

and to be honest I noticed a difference more or less immediately,

I stopped sniffing the first day!

The next thing , was my head started to clear,

I didnt feel half asleep all day,

and this feeling of doom and gloom lifted.

I'd been feeling quite depressed for some time ,

but just put it down getting older, or maybe the change of life .

I haven't had a repeat of any of the " mental problems " up till now anyway.

No strange thoughts or hallucinations, touch wood !

Another thing I've noticed is my dry cough has gone ,and I seem to be breathing a bit better.

Now I know I should have contacted my GP before stopping my meds ,

(but obviously it's not really a good time to be clogging up the NHS,)

However , I am still monitoring my BP, (normal )

and I've been given a fitbit ,

which is quite useful for keeping an eye on my heart rate,and sleep patterns,

Also I was very fit before my OP,

and I'm still landscape gardening for a living

my aortic valve problem was a birth defect apparently,

The rest of my heart was fine,

I'm due a MRI scan soon ,

and I will be seeing my GP to discuss my actions.

I must admit though , I do feel alot better ,

But that could just be all in my mind!

PLEASE PLEASE NOTE IM NOT! suggesting that anyone else should stop their medication.

this was just a personal thing ,

and if I start to feel bad ,I will start my meds again.

Cheers

Paul

[Sunnie2day in reply to Hermanm]

Did you experience any withdrawal symptoms at all or did you 'just' go straight to seeing an end to the side effects you'd had whilst still on the meds regime?

Thank-you for making the point stopping meds without medical supervision is not the best way to go about things. We're all different and what has worked for you will very likely not work for anyone else, and might actually lead to an 'event'. So making the point of stopping without supervision isn't wise is very thoughtful of you, thank-you again!

[Hermanm in reply to Sunnie2day]

Hi ,

Thanks for getting in touch,

And thanks for pointing out ,about stopping meds without medical supervision,

It's not the best idea!

As for your question about withdrawal symptoms,

I'd have to say no,

apart from feeling better ,and not having a constantly runny nose ,

I cant say I've noticed anything in particular,

However in my case ,I didnt feel bad before I was told I needed surgery.

I still have aches and pains,

but that's probably more to do with my job,

than anything else,

I was at a stage where I think my body was telling me something was wrong,

and it needed a rest. ( if that makes sense)

and I have taken a course of action ,

that I definitely wouldn't recommend to anyone else ,

without seeing their GP

Hope this is helpful,

Cheers

Paul

[Sunnie2day in reply to Hermanm]

Very helpful, thank-you