Bisoprolol and shortness of breath

[Laurap18]

Hello everyone! Has anyone been extremely out of brearh after taking Bisoprolol? I have started taking 1.25mg per day a few weeks ago, and lately I feel like I cannot beath. I get out of breath even just having a shower or doing a little movement. I have never been really active, but now I am really struggling with everyday activities. Also, I have noticed that my ankles look a little swollen. I am on diuretics since years and the fluid retention has always been under control, now maybe it's getting worse. I read online that these can be Bisoprolol side effects. Any experience?

[10gingercats]

I found that my fluid retention only changed when I took Spirolactone. This was added to the F. Furosimide did not touch it. Maybe this is the issue and not the Bisoprolol. I take it with no problems.

[Laurap18 in reply to 10gingercats]

I am already taking spironolactone and furosemide, and they have always worked fine

[Hidden in reply to 10gingercats]

I take 1.25mg of bisoprolol per day with other meds, all i feel is being dazed for a while in the mornings, but soon passes. Just keep plodding on waiting to hear if i will have a review of my meds any time soon!!!

[RufusScamp]

I take 10 mg/day and have no trouble with breathlessness. I do get a swollen ankle though. Due to see nurse on Monday.

[Hidden]

I have taken 3.75 mg bisoprolol following my aortic valve replacement. I was told I needed this to lower my heart rate. The breathless I felt before my surgery returned when I started taking the bisiprolol. I've had chest x-rays, been checked and tested for asthma and COPD. There are no signs of lung disease found. Cardiology say it's not heart related and finally the respiratory consultant from the local hospital said he believed it was caused by the bisoprolol. Simplicitly put it is a form of tension between my high heart rate and the drug. My heart rate isn't sufficiently high to need a pacemaker. I don't have a solution but at least I found a reason for the breathlessness. i can only suggest you ask your GP to arrange respiratory tests. Good luck.

[chesson]

I was on 1.25mg of bisoprolol prior to my ablation. I found that climbing a flight of stairs was exhausting and my energy levels were poor. I talked to my cardiologist about the bisoprolol and his reaction was that 1.25mg was a homeopathic dose and could not be the cause of my problems. In fact, it could and was the cause of my lack of energy, as proved by coming off this drug after the ablation. It is clear that we are not all made the same and that some people can take 10mg of bisoprolol and be unaffected, whereas others like me are super sensitive to the stuff. It's a conundrum indeed, since you need something to control the heart rate but could do without these nasty side effects. Talk to your cardiologist about your concerns and don't accept the inference that it is all in your head.

[Desanthony]

Yes I had this with Bisoprolol and all other types of beta blockers, calcium

Channel blockers and rate control medication - I think I tried about 6 or 8 different medications and mixes of medications in my first year of AF and eventually Doc decided to take me off them altogether. The crunch came when I couldn’t even walk down the stairs without taking a rest one Saturday morning - my wife called the cardiology department and as it happened my cardio was there and he said just stop them if I was that bad. Felt so much better and was able to get back to exercising as normal - I have always exercised as it was my job. So it was absolute hell for me to be hardly able to move just because of the medication.

[Hidden]

Dear Laurap18

You are describing that is not normal for you and your body, well done for being so observant something that I think is a big key to help with our diagnosis.

You must contact your heart team {bloody bank holiday} and let them know, keep a record of your weight {daily} and if you feel that there is a problem phone 111 and follow their instructions.

Water retention should never be taken lightly.

Take care and please keep us informed

[Laurap18 in reply to Hidden]

Yes, I will contact my cardiologist first thing on Monday morning.

[Steve_G]

I’ve been taking 1.25mg bisoprolol without any issues since my CABG 3+ years ago. This is a very low dose of a cardio specific beta blocker so it sounds like you need to see your Dr particularly if you think fluid retention might be getting worse.

[Alphakiwi]

Yes bisoprolol slowed me down so much by day 4 i had to stop it. I was getting the same side affects from amioderone which stopped my heart in an ambulance after 10 days.Im judt so drug intolerant. This is the case of some people. Im hetting by with a pacemaker and Diltiazem as a pill in the pocket. In other words i take it if absolutely but never continuously. I am an ex athlete with an extremely enlarged left atrium and developed arryhthmia in later life.

[sebbins]

Hi Laurap18I suffered the same on Bisoprolol and couldn’t wait to come off them. It felt like you were trying to walk through a wall of cling film.

Chess on very wisely says we are all different so if you are not happy persevere with GP or cardiologist.

Hope you get it sorted very quickly

[tony_t]

HiI replied a while back to a similar post as I too had suffered from breathlessness with relatively low levels of activity and this was something I had never suffered from. I was initially told that Bisoprolol was unlikely to be the cause.

I then happened to speak to another doctor and after a review he advised me to stop taking it and then we would review again in a few weeks.

So after being on it for 3 years 2.5mg, I stopped it immediately and breathlessness went within a few days, no side effects at all. They didn't offer an alternative med.....

I have been OK ever since, touch wood. This was despite other doctors saying Bisoprolol wasn't the cause of my Breathlessness.

As of June 2022 I am still fine and no sign of breathlessness, suffice to say that it may not be the same for everyone.

Really hope you are able to find a solution, as I remember all to well how frustrating this was for me.

[Hidden]

Hi Laurap18,I was on bisoprolol for 2 years to help ease the pressure on my heart. I was originally put on 2.5mg then reduced to 1.25mg because of my slow HR and feeling fatigued and dizzy etc. Like you I would get breathless getting dried after a shower which I found very strange and I was always falling asleep but I never had swollen ankles. Like other people have mentioned bisoprolol can affect everyone differently regardless of the dose being taken with various symptoms. If in doubt give your gp or cardiologist a call to ask the question and update them on your symptoms and concerns.

Keep us all updated

Good luck.

[Silvertail]

I was titrated up to 10 mg bisoprolol and I don't have any trouble with it.

[Hidden]

Maybe it also depends on when it is taken. When I was first prescribed to take it in the morning, I was always out of breath, worried about the heart rate when exercising, so started taking it at night with my Lisinopril and not had any problems since. Reading about it it works overnight when many HA happen anyway. So check to see if a simple change could help

[Laurap18 in reply to Hidden]

I'm taking it in the morning, so I could try taking it later. Hopefully it will help. Thanks for the advice

[Fullofheart]

Yes I had these issues with bisoprolol. Exhaustion and breathlessness. Could not tolerate even on low (1.25) dose. It settled a bit after couple weeks but in the end they took me off it.

[Puzzled8]

Hi, I was prescribed 2.5mg Bisoprolol about 2 years ago to help bring down heart rate. I was already suffering breathlessness due to Long Covid so can’t blame meds for that. GP recently increased Bisoprolol to 5mg as HR still too high. I persevered at this doze for about 10 days but had to give up - my whole body felt like a lead weight, it was awful. I am rarely adversely affected by any medications so it just shows how our bodies react differently from each other. Hope you get some help on Monday.

[EMBoy]

One of the known side effects of beta blockers is that they cause constriction of the bronchioles which can lead to breathlessness, so please check with your GP and perhaps ask for a respiratory function test. Out of interest, the drugs used for treatment of asthma (eg salbutamol) have the opposite effect to beta blockers.

[Breesha]

Sounds more like you need to have gentle exercise, I am on 12.5 Bisopropol for 10 years and it’s been a life saver , but I lost a lot of weight as advised , I do charity work , sometimes working hard all day. I do not know why life saving Bisopropol gets such bead press. . Certainly kept me alive , with heart failure , following liver and kidney damage

[Hidden]

I'm on 1.25mg twice a day and it hasn't affected me like this at all, neither breath nor swelling. I hope you find an answer though.

[keitho16]

I suffered breathlessness too after titrating up to 3.75 mg bisoprolol. The consultant told me to go to the lowest dose of 1.25mg and it stopped.

[Bibilovski]

Yes !!! Really badly too. The pharmacist advised building up the dose from a quarter to a half to 2.5 over a few weeks and it worked. From hardly being able to breathe sitting down I now have almost zero symptoms. This is good as I needed the bisoprolol for reducing my BP. Try it...

[Bibilovski]

Yes bisoprolol does make me breathless and the pharmacist told me it can have this effect. I gradually took the full dose but only after taking one quarter and then one half for several weeks. Initially I was do breathless even at rest I felt I was suffocating. Scary. I'm okay now.