Heart rate

[Naddy]

My heart rate has been racing for 4 days can get it below 100 even at resting a slight movement to it goes crazy, yesterday I had to call an ambulance it got that bad, had blood tests in hospital my tsh is nearly non existent and my t4 just slightly over they said so said it was hyperthyroidism which Iv suspected for a long time as I have a massive goiter and suffer horrendous anxiety, so my question is anyone with hyperthyroidism have this crazy fast heart? It's scaring me so much but I'm trying to stay calm xx

[Vbgr]

Hi, yes I had pulse of 130 until the doc gave me propranolol which is a beta blocker. That made me more comfortable until my overactive thyroid calmed down with carbimazole medication. Doc said the beta blockers would safeguard my heart. Good luck with your meds. Val

[Nanaedake]

Could I ask a few questions before answering your query? It helps to have the bigger picture. Are you or were you taking any thyroid medication? Have you got your most recent blood test results including any for thyroid antibodies?

Your raised pulse rate could be caused by a couple of thyroid conditions that raise the activity of thyroid tissue. If you've got your blood test results, or when you get them,if you post them here then people can give you helpful advice and suggestions. Remember to include the laboratory ranges as they do vary.

What has your GP recommended and what investigations or treatment have you had for the goiter? Anxiety is one of the symptoms of an overactive thyroid gland or of overtreatment in the case of someone on thyroid medication. Have you got an appointment to see your GP or has the hospital referred you to the endocrinology unit?

[Naddy in reply to Nanaedake]

The hospital have put me a referral, I haven't got the bloody results but I did ask for number so not sure this will help or not, tsh at 0.02 and t4 at 19, not on any medication as of yet because my goiter is so big I think they want to wait till I see a specialist, my bloods have been sent off for antibodies and will have the results back in 2 weeks

[Nanaedake in reply to Naddy]

Good, hopefully when you get the blood test results it'll clarify the situation. Do request, and keep a copy of all your blood test results from now on as well as a note of how much (and which) medication you were on at the time.

A racing heart rate feels very scary but if your heart is sound it's not as bad as it feels since your heart is designed to cope with beating fast such as when you excercise. Of course it's not supposed to be doing it when you're resting which is why you want to get treatment.

Without the laboratory ranges I can't be sure about your blood results but if in the UK, normally a TSH of 0.02 is suppressed but not unusual so don't panic about it. You can register online through your GP to view your blood test results but I don't think it will give you access to your hospital blood tests so you'll need to get a copy of those each time.

A rapid heart rate can cause anxiety as can fear of not understanding what is happening and feeling your body is out of control. Staying calm is easier said than done but do anything that is calming and avoid things that upset you for the next couple of weeks until you get your apt.

[greygoose in reply to Naddy]

You need to make sure they do antibody tests. This could be Grave's, with the low TSH, but your FT4 is not that high - in most ranges, wouldn't even be near the top. Or, it could be the vagaries of Hashi's. You need to know which it is, so you're prepared for the future. Both could cause a goitre. But, doctors tend to see a low TSH and panic. They often have a kneejerk reaction without looking any further.

[Naddy in reply to greygoose]

Antibodies test has been sent off, Iv got an appointment today with doctor to get something for this fast heart rate was going to if he would medicate me for hyperthyroidism, do u think I should wait until the antibodies tests are back and just used some beta blockers till then?

[greygoose in reply to Naddy]

I can't really answer that, without knowing the range for the FT4, and - preferably - seeing and FT3 test. What makes you hyper is not a low TSH, nor even a high FT4, it's a very over-range FT3 and, it would seem, they haven't even tested that.

[Naddy in reply to greygoose]

Yeah they haven't tested my t3 ever, Iv got some blood results from July I will right out for u now...

Serum tsh level 0.2mIU/L (0.4-5.0)

Serum free t4 level 19 pmol/L (9-19)

[greygoose in reply to Naddy]

That doesn't really tell one very much, without an FT3. Were those tests done in the same laboratory?

[Naddy in reply to greygoose]

No I don't think so, these where doctors ones and the ones I had yesterday where in hospital

[greygoose in reply to Naddy]

OK, so the ranges aren't necessarily the same.

Personally, I wouldn't start taking medication for hyper, until I knew more. Just the beta blockers for the heart - although, I wouldn't take them either, because they make me ill - and they will lower your T4 a little. It doesn't matter about the TSH, don't allow your doctor to get hung up on that! It means very little.

[humanbean]

Make sure you get tested for iron-deficiency anaemia. Low iron can cause all sorts of problems with the heart. I developed tachycardia (heart rate went up to 150) and severe chest pain due to low iron. The solution, as far as the doctors were concerned, was beta blockers. Drugs for anxiety and depression got mentioned too, and so did statins because my cholesterol was high. I refused all those things except the beta blockers which I only took when absolutely essential.

I did eventually get a prescription for two months worth of iron supplements. After they ran out I bought them myself and paid for my own testing. It took me nearly two years to get my levels up to optimal. To get them to optimal I also had to go gluten-free because of absorption problems. The better my iron levels got, the fewer problems I had with my heart.

Your TSH at 0.02 is not amazingly low and a Free T4 of 19 is not particularly high. It is possible you have Graves' Disease, but my first suspicion would be a hyper swing of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (also known as autoimmune hypothyroidism or autoimmune thyroid disease).

For more info on thyroid antibodies :

labtestsonline.org.uk/under...

[Naddy]

I also feel like I go from hyper to hypo every few weeks is this possible when I feel hyper I loose weight when I go hypo I put the weight back on! It's really confusing all this thyroid stuff lol

[Hidden]

Have you been tested for Atrial Fibrillation? I too had to go to A&E with a pulse of 150-179 for 4 hours. Not too good with Bisoprolol but take a calcium channel blocker as well as Pradaxa to thin my blood. Also take 100 of Levothyroxine for hypothyroidism

D