Low hr/bradycardia months/years following surgery

[QuincyRunner]

Those are good points, oo0My. I should not have implied that an HR in the 40's is nothing to be concerned about. It depends on what the reason is, or if there are comorbidities, and most importantly if when under load the heart can respond appropriately to provide the needed oxygen. In my case the biggest concern was whether or not my heart block would prevent that from happening when I was under physical exertion which would result in a heart attack. Of course the lack of oxygen to the heart muscle during physical exertion is what causes most heart attacks and is most often associated with atherosclerosis typically found in smokers and/or overweight people, rather than those of us with valvular diseases.

 

[d333gs]

To put this heart rate thing into perspective.....
My HR drops to the high 20's every night and averages under 35 for the entire night except when I get up to go to the bathroom. It has been the way for the past 12 years since my OHS and is of no concern to me even though various cardiologists and other medical folks have been quite alarmed about it. For a while I agreed to wear a heart monitor but every night I was getting calls from some contract doctor somewhere telling me to go to the ER. I would politely decline and then disconnect the heart monitor. Similar situation now that I have an Apple Watch. It has a pre-programmed setting that sets off an alarm whenever a person's HR drops below 40 for more than 10 seconds. Just one night of it going off constantly forced me to disconnect that also. I can't even use the watch's EKG function because it tells me that I have Bradycardia and that my HR is too low to get an accurate reading. The thing is, I don't technically have Bradycardia. I have 2nd degree heart block and when at rest I skip about every 3rd or 4th heartbeat, which over the course of 60 seconds averages out to a low HR even though I'm in normal sinus rhythm when not skipping a beat. That might sound counterintuitive but I do not have a consistent slow heartbeat (Bradycardia), I have skipped beats (heart block). The reason that I am not concerned is that when I am under physical stress, such as running or even doing pushups, or anything that raises my blood pressure, my HR returns to normal and I stop skipping beats. I have had to prove this to my cardiologist and electrophysiologist by submitting to stress tests and even by doing pushups in their office. Of course they still want to implant a pacemaker but I think it is a CYA thing for them. By the way, I have no symptoms such as fainting (of course I am usually sleeping when my HR hits the 20's) and I am not taking any Ace Inhibitor's or Beta Blockers. I say all this to say that very low HR's, especially in the 40's, are not necessarily something to freak out about.

That is amazing!!!

 

[KarenK]

To put this heart rate thing into perspective.....
My HR drops to the high 20's every night and averages under 35 for the entire night except when I get up to go to the bathroom. It has been the way for the past 12 years since my OHS and is of no concern to me even though various cardiologists and other medical folks have been quite alarmed about it. For a while I agreed to wear a heart monitor but every night I was getting calls from some contract doctor somewhere telling me to go to the ER. I would politely decline and then disconnect the heart monitor. Similar situation now that I have an Apple Watch. It has a pre-programmed setting that sets off an alarm whenever a person's HR drops below 40 for more than 10 seconds. Just one night of it going off constantly forced me to disconnect that also. I can't even use the watch's EKG function because it tells me that I have Bradycardia and that my HR is too low to get an accurate reading. The thing is, I don't technically have Bradycardia. I have 2nd degree heart block and when at rest I skip about every 3rd or 4th heartbeat, which over the course of 60 seconds averages out to a low HR even though I'm in normal sinus rhythm when not skipping a beat. That might sound counterintuitive but I do not have a consistent slow heartbeat (Bradycardia), I have skipped beats (heart block). The reason that I am not concerned is that when I am under physical stress, such as running or even doing pushups, or anything that raises my blood pressure, my HR returns to normal and I stop skipping beats. I have had to prove this to my cardiologist and electrophysiologist by submitting to stress tests and even by doing pushups in their office. Of course they still want to implant a pacemaker but I think it is a CYA thing for them. By the way, I have no symptoms such as fainting (of course I am usually sleeping when my HR hits the 20's) and I am not taking any Ace Inhibitor's or Beta Blockers. I say all this to say that very low HR's, especially in the 40's, are not necessarily something to freak out about.

Your story sounds like my father’s up until the night his 2nd degree turned into 3rd degree. It was a rush in the middle of the night to the ER with no cardiologist or doctor of any type there. The only doctors were on call. His heart rate was down to 14. The staff on duty blamed it on faulty equipment. They did call the cardiologist but told him not to worry, it’ll keep til the a.m. The doctor’s wife was out of town, he had 4 small kids, it would have been so easy for him to just go back to sleep. By the time he got them up and to the hospital my dad‘s heart rate was 0. Fortunately he made it in time. He survived but with a few broken ribs. Your heart has held steady for 12 years but that doesn’t mean it’ll continue that way. Your situation could change at anytime. Why risk it? Why not get a pacemaker than risk going without?

 

[d333gs]

just because:

What does ACE inhibitor do?

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, often shortened to ACE inhibitors, are a type of medications that lower your blood pressure. They interfere with how your body converts angiotensin into a form that raises your blood pressure.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/21934-ace-inhibitors

How is your BP Pell? Mine is rising ....... 138-140 over 65-75 , I just started the DASH diet