Bisoprolol

[Lovolde]

Yesterday I went to register at local GP who took my pulse and blood pressure. My pulse was racing - 110 - due to anxiety and coffee. She immediately prescribed me 5mg bisoprolol without any further checks to bring my heart rate down. Is this normal? I am under a lot of stress at moment with broken wrist and arm in plaster. Am also overweight. Is this normal? I am worried about starting to take meds like this...

[Happyrosie]

Hello Lovolde. Firstly I’m going to tell you not to worry - easy for me to say, isn’t it! I’m slightly surprised that the GP didn’t go down the path that the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) suggests. But you didn’t say whether your blood pressure was up - I assume it was?

I’m also assuming that the GP wants you return after a few weeks to see how you’re doing and you can use that time to good effect.

Find the website of Blood Pressure UK and have a good read of it.

Then when you go back to the GP you will have a lot more knowledge and be able to talk to her as equals. In the meantime follow the hints and tips that the website gives on keeping your pressures under control including exercise and diet.

Do please keep us I formed of how you get on!

[Lovolde in reply to Happyrosie]

What is the path that the NICE suggests? Am currently living in Hungary, so not sure what that is. Hungarian doctors seem very quick to prescribe things without looking at underlying cause.... probably that am overweight and put on more during covid due to less exercise.

[Happyrosie in reply to Lovolde]

I’m still assuming you have high blood pressure? I don’t think you said? The reason I mention NICE is that there is a recommended pathway for GPs to follow - assuming you live in the UK! And it seemed to me that the pathway was not being followed.

The pathway is quite complex for blood pressure but, just from memory, it starts by suggesting how many readings to take over a short period and when to review you again. It’s written for doctors but anyone is free to look. Go to the NICE website and put something like ‘hypertension’ into their search box. You will be led down some rabbit holes and you may not understand much of it. As I say, I only mentioned NICE as I was puzzled by what your doctor had done.

But for us amateurs, read the Blood Pressure UK advice.