Morning all,
Past 2 years been diagnosed with bradycardia, mild lvh and mild mvp. Cardiologist stopped bisoprolol back in March due to low heart rate mid30/40. Awaiting test results from 3 day holter monitor but I'm still having low heart rate readings during the day and at night(yesterday) around 40bpm is this normal. Cardiologist said he may fit a pacemaker if its still low! any views, advice or own experience?
Hi, yes I do get tired/fatigued when it gets low i call it my shutdown mode I can feel my heart rate drop and sometimes feel lightheaded. This can last for around 30 mins to an hour or so and then i feel ok again. Sometimes my bp goes high or low and i can get tachy going upstairs etc. All very strange.
And this is it now feeling a bit off.
Hi taz I had same issues I had pacemaker fitted and everything has been fine since no further problems only when battery needs changed I hate it but apart from that I more or less now live a fairly healthy lifestyle my heart rate was dangerously low at the time they decided to give pacemaker and nothing they did improved that until pacemaker so if you get that option grab it good luck xx
Hi Lucy, that great news for you glad its all going good. If you don't mind me asking what did you hr drop to? Mine was around 33/40 when on bisoprolol but since I stopped the meds in March it went to about 39 at the lowest. Once I was blue lighted from work and it was at 30 on route to a&e. I just don't feel myself anymore and these episodes are far too regular....daily sometimes and I'm hope all is ok but also want a pacemaker to finally get things back on track and I can move on if that makes sense. Last night I was low and this morning too feeling a bit dizzy at 40bpm. Just waiting for the holter monitor results fingers crossed it will show something. Best wishes.
And this was it this morning on kardiamobile.
How long have you been having readings like this taz
On and off over 2 years, had ecg exercise test, mri, bloods, holter monitors, blood pressure monitor, was diagnosed with bradycardia at 33bpm, mild left ventricular hypertrophy and mild mitral valve regurgitation. Never suffered with bp but its all over the place sometimes high at 158/103 or low with banging headaches and I get tachycardia at time while sitting down or walking upstairs apart from that fit n healthy 50 Yr old🤣.
Hi Taz,My history sounds very similar to yours, though I was also breathless at times on exertion. Unfortunately the halter monitor didn’t capture what was happening. I was having episodes of bradycardia and sometimes tachycardia and raised BP. My GP advised that I should go to A&E if I had one of these episodes as then they could see what was happening as it happened.
I had by this time purchased a Kardia monitor and one evening , feeling very unwell it was showing AF.
111 advised me to go to A&E. After assessment I was admitted to CCU. at 4.30 a.m. …..by 11 a.m. I had a pacemaker fitted, dual lead. Cardiologist recommended I go back on Bisoprolol 1.25.
The pacemaker to stop my heart rate dropping and pausing, and the Bisoprolol to prevent tachycardia or AF.
This was over 2 years ago and I feel great. I don’t think I had realised just how bad I felt. I had grown almost used to my horrible symptoms. I am leading a normal life and am no longer aware of my wobbly heartbeat .
Best wishes and hope that you find answers that are right for you too.
Hi VivienneB, thank you for sharing your own story and yes its very similar to my own. I too get breathless sometimes just walking upstairs or even getting dried after a shower. I have been to A&E twice but after 8 hours all was ok and i was sent home. Previous test have found signs of lvh, bradycardia and mvp so I was prescribed bisoprolol to ease the pressure on the left ventricle which was thickened to 1.3cm. I was generally fit, cycling each wk and busy working in a physical job but over the past 2 years or so I have been struggling daily with symptoms of bradycardia, tachycardia and my BP is all over the place. The kardiamobile 6l has noted theses episodes too so I'm just waiting for the holter monitor test to come back. The only thing I'm hopeful off is while wearing the monitor I had a whole morning of my hr being a low 40/45 which I hope it recorded. I know something isn't right so fingers crossed the cardiologist will see this and then move on with what he thinks best be it a pacemaker etc like yourself. Glad to see you're feeling a lot better living a normal life again.Best wishes
Taz.
Thank you for your reply Taz. I really empathize with the problems you are facing, needing answers and finding the right solution for you. I will keep my fingers crossed for you that the monitor will show up the problem. Please keep us posted. My diagnosis is different really as my report says 2nd degree Heart Block. Mobitz 2.
Best wishes, Vivienne.
Thanks, I will keep you posted when I know more.
Hi Vivienne - that’s exactly what I get. They took me off Bisoprolol like Taz as the heart rate was too low but now the ectopics are more pronounced with long pauses, runs of SVT - even when sleeping. Cardiology seem very dismissive. I’ve just come back from day surgery (not cardio related) and they picked up on the irregularities.
Hi ninjacat, same here ectopics,palpatations etc when I was giving blood back in 2019 the picked up on my irregular sometimes fast heart rate and stopped me from donating and referred me to my gp...... I'm still waiting for some conclusion to it all still.
I recently dot diagnosed with that and a holter for 7 days showed my HR can go down 26bpm during sleep. I also have AF, heart flutter, left bundle branch block and HF. Had triple bypass in 2015 but thankfully that is 100% clear. My cardiologist took me off bisoprolol 2.5mg due to risk and I needed CRT-D fitted which was done 6 weeks ago. As soon as the device was fitted was put back on 1.25mg a day and 5 weeks later increased to 2.5mg. Due to my arrythimia its impossible for my Samsung watch to read accurate HR although my pacemaker is set to pace at 40bpm
Hi EssexSteve, 26 HR is low mine was 30 while in the ambulance and the paramedic said it was worrying even though I was ok in a strange sort of way. As you mentioned in your post you've had some challenges along your journey has the pacemaker made a big difference for you? Hope all goes well and thanks again for taking the time to post your own story and advice.Best wishes
Taz.
I've had a low (40 ish) heart rate for many years. I'm 87 now and the only ones who are concerned are my doctors. I take 2.5mg bisoprolol. Don't know why but at least all the ectopics I was experiencing have stopped.
Morning Keith35, when your heart rate was in the low 40s did you feel dizzy or tired etc? The bisoprolol will ease the ectopics/palpatations your experiencing at times unfortunately I had to stop taking it due to the low hr and dizzy spells hence i now get them more often. Best wishes and take care.
Regards
Taz71.
I have bradycardia. My pulse dropped to 30 and had heart block. I passed out and hit my head. Not a pretty sight. I was taken to hospital by ambulance. I received a pacemaker 8 years ago and so far no issues. It is worth getting. Except for the bump on your chest you don’t know it is there.
I too passed out back in 2018 not sure why i just got up in the middle of the night to go the toilet next thing I remember was the thud when I hit the floor wedged between the toilet and wall. Then I felt the blood trickling down my head and my wife running into to see what the noise was. I just laughed it off as getting up out of bed too quick but looking back maybe it was related to my symptoms who knows. With any luck they will fit me with a pacemaker or give me the all clear? Glad to see all is ok for you now.
Best wishes
Taz.
Hi Taz, I'm new to this blog but saw your post and thought I'd respond too. I'm on Bisoprolol 5mg up from 1.25mg. I seem to handle the increase but also like you have sinus bradycardia so my heart rate drops to 40 sometimes 36 bpm. I have 2 stents but since my last heart attack in Feb (came with no warning) they also fitted an ICD (pace maker / AED) my heart cannot go any lower than 40bpm or more than 170bpm. Its shocked me once, really weird feeling, it reset my heart beat. So I look at it as my borg implant (star trek geek sorry) and guardian. Since increasing my bisoprolol my big heart flutters have stopped. The ICD hasn't stopped me teaching spinning 🚴🚴🚴 classes. 😊
Hi PTGH48, Thanks for sharing your own story, its worrying when the heart rate drops suddenly i can actually feel my pulse dropping and have an idea of the readings before I actually check it. Not sure if the cardiologist will put me back on the bisoprolol but depending on the monitor results maybe a pacemaker can help sort my HR out. Glad to see the ICD is working for you and doing its job and you are doing yours 🚴♂️.....I tried spin class a few times, loved it as I'm a mountain biker or was and its hard work so credit to you.
Best wishes
Taz.
Hi Taz71,
I have never had bisoprolol, but do get ectopics and occasional episodes of AF. I have bradycardia due to Mobitz type 2 heart block with intermittent stage 3 heart block.
After about a year of feeling breathless, tired and dizzy, I collapsed in a supermarket car park whilst loading shopping into my car. If it had happened 5 minutes later, I would have been driving.
The ambulance arrived and the paramedic noticed I had an irregular heart beat, and decided to take me to A&E. As soon as a bed was available in the Cardiac Care Unit, I was transferred, and a pacemaker was fitted the same day. I had suspected that I had an arrhythmia, but blamed it on my underactive thyroid gland, and didn't realise how serious it was.
The only way to diagnose what is causing your bradycardia is ECG, so your Holter monitor should have picked up what is wrong. If you need a pacemaker, it's not the end of the world - just before I was discharged from hospital, the senior nurse said to me that the pacemaker would give me a new lease of life, and she was correct. This all happened just over two and a half years ago, and I can now live a normal active life.
I hope it all works out for you.
Hi EMBoy, thanks for your post.Like you I have dizzy spells and feel fatigued and lightheaded at times.
I try to get on with things but now feel its starting to happen too much and 2 years on I feel its time to get it sorted out or just move on and try to live with it....and accept it.
Horrible as it was for you to collapse in the car park thankfully it wasn't behind the wheel as you said. I think we all just shrug things off and try to carry on but like you sometimes you just don't realise how poorly you can be. Glad to see the pacemaker has given you a new lease of life and you can carry on being active again.
Best wishes
Taz.
Morning all, Its been a week sinceI handed my holter monitor back and there's no sign of any results back yet is that good or bad? Or still too early?
Also I had a bad day yesterday my HR was low while out shopping with my daughter and i felt a bit lightheaded.
In the evening while doing tea I thought I was going to pass out so i had to sit down. My Hr was down to 43 not as low as other times but I suddenly felt lethargic and just on the edge of fainting if that makes sense.I had to sit down and I felt like I was sinking into the pillow completely wiped out. After about an hour I started to come out of it but my HR was fluctuating between 44 and 68 in seconds up and down while resting. It was like that all evening and while i was in bed. The kardiamobile noted bradycardia too.
Today I'm feeling drained and HR sitting between 48 and 52.
I gave my doctors a call this morning and no results have come back yet, not sure if thats a good or bad sign i will keep you all posted when I find out more.Regards
Taz71.
Hi Heartifact, I agree things are busier than usual at the minute. Best wishes
Taz71.
Av block, bradycardia and exercise.
Metoprolol when you have bradycardia?
Bradycardia 
Bisoprolol and Heart Flutter
Bisoprolol withdrawal 
