I have had heart problems for 18 months now, i haven't been diagnosed with a specific cause yet but the cardiologist is looking at Myocarditis or Heart failure. My symptoms are worse so i went the docs and he had a xray done the results said i had an enlarged heart so he now wants me to have a echo again to see what is happening. I cant seem to find much about enlarged hearts and the mortality .
View 15 RepliesI have a relative who has been diagnosed with an enlarged heart. My father died of an enlarged heart 25 years ago. so its in the family.
I am an engineer so I can understand a simple explanation that if your heart gets bigger but the muscle doesn't get stronger then the pressure it can pump falls away and you have a problem of insufficient blood flow and low blood pressure. Drugs that make the heart work harder are only going to wear the muscles out faster unless you can make them grow so they are again in the right proportion to the heart size.
One drastic solution I heard of is that instead of making the muscles grow or just work harder we make the pump back to its old efficiency. Heart too Big? Then just make it smaller. The idea is that the surgeon just cuts a wedge out of the muscle and sews the remaining heart back together. It all then heals and you have as good as new, I can't imagine what you do while it heals but I am only an engineer and I expect the heart experts to have such issues covered. After all swapping a heart out is now routine.
I was told by my GP yesterday that I may have Heart Failure due to the results from my xray showing I have a enlarged heart. She sent me today to have a load of blood tests one being the BNP,NT-pro. I am really scared as my sister died of a heart attack last November without warning. But I am really annoyed has she had the results from the x ray since the 1/4/15 and I only could find out on the 16/4/15..Has anybody found out this way before and what is the prognosis I get everyone is different. But in general.
View 18 Replieshave been suffering from palpitations every now and then for the past few years but they have been getting a lot worse recently to the point where if I walk up one set of stairs my heart goes berserk and I have to catch my breath once I get to the top. And sometimes just randomly it will feel like it's pounding so hard and fast and nothing I can do to calm it down just wait. I suffer high blood pressure and take medicine. I'm 22 years old. Healthy I'm not overweight. My doctor recently said for me to get a 24 hour heart monitor which I did yesterday and no waiting on the results. Has anyone else had similar symptoms to mine? Or does anyone know what it could be besides anxiety cause I know what anxiety feels like and this is different. It's like my heart just goes crazy sometimes! I'm anxious about the results! If anything was bad they would contact me within a couple of days of receiving the heart monitor right? They say wait up to a week but if urgent will be sooner.
View 1 RepliesRecently my heart has been trembling a lot and i find it hard to sleep because i can feel it beating. I used to feel pain in my heart on occasion before, but i have not had that recently. When I drink coffee the tremors are more noticeable and more frequent.
On my mother's side, she has history of high blood pressure and heart disease, her father died at 50 from a heart attack and my cousin (32 female) has a pacemaker.
Other symptoms include:
Redness under my eyes
Pitted and grooved nails
Personal profile:
25 y/o male
Smoker - 10 a day
I used to use cocaine infrequently for around 2 years (a heavy session once a month)
I don't drink alot maybe once a week
I have a heart rate most of the time from 42 to 50 BPM , my blood pressure is usually 145 to 160 over 75 to 80. My cardiologist has me taking 75 mg, of Lopressor, 360 mg, of verapamil, .4 mg nitroglycerin patch. And now he wants to add 10 mg of Ramipril ( Altace ) a day, my recent cardiograms have have shown sinus bradycardia. That's before starting the Ramipril , I'm just very leary about starting the Ramipril in first of all the highest dose there is, and second of all it could further lower my heart rate and send my heart into an AV Block that could lead to many things not good !
View 2 RepliesIs an enlarged heart classed as heart failure?
View 9 RepliesI am 47 years old and I need some advice considering Viagra use. Could Viagra cause Heart Problems? I do not think that my problem with erection is connected with physical state my body is in, though I am a bit overweight. I think that it has to do something with my daily-accumulated stress. I have been recently appointed to a place of CEO in my company and that is a strenuous job.
View 14 RepliesI have premature beats, a bit of tachycardia, and valve problems in upper and lower chambers and a distorted aorta. Recently (only at night - so that may be the reason), I am woken up by a huge breath and my chest is being thrown forward - well thats what it seems like? Could this be the heart stopping and restarting or perhaps just sleep apnea?
View 1 Replieshaving heart palpitations and heavy feeling in chest when at rest. thought it could be anxiety related since i lost both my parents suddenly and my job of 17 years in less than one year. i see a shrink and am prescribed ativan and klonopin. when discomfort happens, i have taken anywhere from 2 to 6 mg. of ativan and 1mg. of klonopin and discomfort does not subside. i have not mentioned this to my doctor right now because during routine physical 9 months ago protein and blood are showing up in my urine. i have no physical symptoms-no pain and blood is not visible. have had a kidney ultrasound and CT scan and they are clear. also was checked for diabetes and results were negative. seems like if there is a problem the doctor can see, i would feel something. have an appointment with a urologist but this also happened about 10 years ago, had a cystoscopy and things were fine. i should also add that i am a smoker for 35 years-have decided to try to quit.
View 2 RepliesFor three months now, I have been having strange problems with my heart. I have been experiencing a (mostly intermittent) heavy heartbeat. I'm a 170 lbs 5'10'' 23 year old male in fairly good health. I work out regularly (mostly strength training).
It all started three months ago when I started noticing my heartbeat. It felt most like palpitations, which I have had before, but mostly it was just an odd sensation. Eventually, it turned into a really extremely heavy heartbeat. When I would lift something light or just get up, it would feel like it was pounding out of my chest--really unsettling.
About three or four days after the symptoms started, I started having extremely bizarre symptoms when I tried to go to sleep. I would begin to drift off, and it would feel as though I was aware of my loss of consciousness. I would feel really light headed and it just felt horrible, like I was going to pass out and die.
Before the symptoms started, the only thing that was different to my knowledge was that I changed my diet a bit. I was trying to really gain some muscle. I was working out 4 days on, 3 days off and increased my protein and carb intake. I was having a protein shake after my workouts that included whey protein and creatine supplements.
As soon as the symptoms started, I immediately stopped everything--the intense workouts, the supplements, and the over-eating--I just went back to normal. Oddly, the symptoms persisted, and only very gradually got better across three months.
I also decided to see a doctor initially, and had been to the ER two more times on top of that. I also saw a cardiologist. They all did blood tests, checked my thyroid, got a chest X-Ray, and did EKG's. I even got an cardiac echo. And nothing. They told me I was 100% (heart and otherwise) healthy.
After three months, I am still having symptoms. At times, my heart does seem to be beating normally, but about half the time or more it will kick start and just go crazy. Sometimes for seemingly no reason, and other times when I begin significant psychical activity. I would be able to live with this, but its the issues I have when trying to go to sleep that are the worst. Just last night, it felt like as I was drifting off, my heart felt really heavy and "chunky" and almost felt like it was beating against my ribcage or something else and making my inside shake. Really weird. (I have these symptoms during the day at times too).
I also have minor but bizarre pains that I can feel in the center of my chest, and sometimes in the top of my back. I have experiences odd tingling sensations in my chest, arms, finger tips. I also have sensations as if I get one really strong heartbeat. I will be sitting doing something and feel a big beat and my chest that makes me jump almost. I don't know if is a palpitation or what, but my palpitations have never felt like that before.
I am just really tired of dealing with this. Because it has to do with my heart I can't ignore it, especially when it disrupts my sleep. I have been told it could be anxiety but I just don't think so. Symptoms come on randomly and when I am not even thinking about it. I admit, I obsess over my heart a bit some days, but it is just because this problem seems so impossible.
I would like to think my diet is fairly decent, I do eat some garbage sometimes, but I try to get plenty of fruits, vegetables and water. I don't drink much at all and have an occasional cup of coffee. I still work out but only 3 days a week (m-w-f). I don't do the protein or creatine anymore. I don't have any other symptoms.
had bypass heart surgery two months ago and was told that it was normal to experience some difficulty sleeping following the surgery. am noticing though that it is not getting better and i am assuming the effects of the anesthesia are no longer a possible reason for my problems. it is ridiculous really. go to bed at midnight, find myself still awake at 2 am, then go read a book or watch some show, and for some reason still awake at 5 am most days. i am now retired so there is no reason for getting up but certainly have the feeling that this routine is far from healthy. what can i do?
View 1 RepliesI have been on 1.25mg of bisoprolol for nearly a year now. I was put on it due to an irregular heartbeat. my heart would either miss a beat or totally go into overdrive. The doctor never sent me for further tests. So my question is what causes this problem. My heart still jumps about but not as much. but sometimes when I do a little exercise I feel very odd for example can't lay on my left side because it hurts around my heart plus my chest can feel tight and today my heart rate is 52 where normally its in its 80's.
View 1 RepliesI am 24 years old, 82kg and been stressing about my health for the past month.
I first experienced a very fast heart rate from a short 2 min jog up the road were i had to stop and wait for my heart rate to slow down.
now since then my stamina has gradually gone right down to the point were I am unable to go up two flights of stairs without my heart racing and feeling out of breath. bearing in mind at rest I only experience a tight chest no shortness of breath.
To rule out heart problems I recently had a Echo-cardiogram,ECG,holter test and a chest x-ray. I was told all my valves were fine, my arteries were not blocked and my ecg came back abnormal but it was not serious. (all these tests were done in the past 3 weeks)
Now as I had my consultation with an expert they noticed I was wheezing and I explained to her every single day my chest feels sore and tight. even now as i type laying on my bed. I was diagnosed with asthma when I was a child but I seemed to grow out of it, however back in 2006 I had similar feeling to what I have experiencing now which is tight chest pains, shortness of breath. but I cant remember my heart jumping really high from exertion of walking up the stairs.
so now I am going to visit my asthma clinic on thursday to see what they say,suggest etc.
So my question is could these symptoms of tight chest and short breath be linked to my fast heart rate?
Anyone who suffers anxiety knows what heart palpitations feel like. About 2 months ago, I was having them non-stop for days went to ER. They could see them on the monitor but said EKG looked okay and blood tests were normal. I still get them almost daily. They are scary and incredibly annoying, but I just try and cope with them. Well anyways, today I got to work and right after doing shift change, the phone rang and I needed to go assist a resident up on third floor. I don't like the elevator we have so i walked up the stairs. By the time I got up there I was so short of breath I could barely talk. And my heart rate was 144 and I could feel and literally see my heart beating. After sitting down and resting for about 5 minutes the pounding just stopped. I still have the palpitations though. The shortness of breath I am wondering if it is even related. I am 5months pregnant and I know that with my uterus expanding it can cause that. but something like this has never happened before. Last year I went to a cardiologist who did and EKG told me I had a sinus arrhythmia which is not serious and sent me on my way. I have smoked for a bout 7 years now, sometimes heavy others not so much. I have stress on a daily basis, and I do consume probably too much caffeine. I am 21 and otherwise in good health. Major anxiety though. Anyone have this happen before and turned out fine? I don't mean to sound like a hypo but I have two daughters already and it scares me to death to wonder where they would end up if anything were to happen to me.
View 2 Repliesduring normal annual physical doctor found protein in urine. ran tests for diabetes-tests were negative. he re-checked 3 months later and protein was not present, but blood was. about 10 years ago another doctor found blood in my urine and i went to see a urologist and had a cystoscopy which came out normal. he told me that rarely there are people with traces of blood in urine for no reason. since then i have had regular physicals and no mention of abnormal urine test results have come up. now, out of the blue not only is blood coming and going(not visible to naked eye)but protein shows up and the numbers that show my kidney function are a little bit out of average range. doc sent me for kidney ultrasound and CT scan which came out clear. i have an appointment with a urologist, but am still curious about this problem. also, in reading stories on this website, i found an odd similarity in stories about having urinary problems and heart palpitations(which i have not mentioned to my doc). the palpitations started about 6 mos. ago. i thought they were related to anxiety since i have lost both my parents suddenly(they did not pass away together) and my job of 17 years in less than one year. i see a shrink on a regular basis for depression and he prescribes lorazepam and klonopin to me. when these palpitations escalated to having pressure in the center of my chest i tried taking anywhere from 2 mg. to 6 mg. of lorazepam and 1 mg. of klonopin to ease the pain and attributing symptoms to anxiety, but the meds did not help. i have not had any other heart related symptoms like pain in arm, jaw, or shoulder. could these two sets of symptoms be related? like i mentioned before, just reading other stories where both things were mentioned struck me as so odd!! perhaps someone could shed some light on this situation for me.
View 1 RepliesOur 25 year old athletic marathon running/bike riding daughter with good sugar and cholesterol levels most of her life had a massive heart attack recently. Has anyone studied the effects of "insulin" in young adults to see if there is any correlation between taking insulin and heart attacks in young adults?
View 1 RepliesIn May 2015 I suffered a small heart attack according to my consultant, it was a bank holiday, i was told that there was no consultant until the following week
Over the weekend I was monitored and on the Tuesday went down to laboratory to investigate the causes. They found that the LAD was 90 % blocked and the RCA and LMS were moderate , 3 stents were fitted and I was given medication to control the Colestral , the cardiologist told me I have a good heart and to push every thing to the back of my mind and don't let it control me
I found as time went by month on month that I was still
Getting niggles and angina pain , the angina pain I found difficult and still do find in hard to differentiate , I may now understand as I was taking far to much GTN X 6 instead of one per year. I find I can walk for
Miles and go to the gym with no issues , but what s confusing me when i have been decorating over 3 months period bending low and reaching high to paint gives me angina pain and it's harder to breath , then my heart rate drops from average of 62 to 43 .
9 months on and I've been back in twice with false alarms getting pain
Last month 26/2 was getting checked out for AF as I had a erratic heartbeat, they were concerned and explained the how the Atrial chamber when pulsing transfer the blood to ventricles and if my heart is missing beats the worry is its retaining blood and this may clot and lead to strokes . However after the investigation they did no do
Anything but gave me two options I was quite shocked 1 CABG or try another stent
I've been out of work now for a 3 months as work on contracts so really need to be back in work, however I gave my wishes to try another stent as the LAD is starting to Narrow before the point of insertion , previously I was informed arteries take a life time to get blocked how can this happen in 9 months with careful food planning and medication being taken, since the blast hospital
Visit I have changed medication on atorvastatin to simvastatin. There was no mention when I came out of theatre about my erratic heartbeat but found it was slightly worse than before the procedure ....
I have recently been diagnosed with an thoracic aortic aneurysm and a badly damaged left ventricular valve. The aneurysm is 5.9cm and on the arch at the top of my heart. It was found by accident when I had a ct scan for difficulty swallowing then further tests followed which found that the 'murmur' I was diagnosed with 7 years ago had deteriorated so badly the left ventricular valve would have to be replaced with a mechanical one. At the moment I am waiting for a final visit with the surgeon before being given a date for the op. The thing is I feel perfectly fine, I have no pain, no shortness of breath, have as much energy as always and in fact feel fit as a fiddle. I am 58 and have kept as upbeat as possible about all this, but my family are distraught with worry about the 10 - 15% chance that I won't make it through the surgery (national statistics) and the possibility of stroke or paralysis. My dad had an aortic aneurysm (unknown to him) and it ruptured, he survived the surgery but died 3 months later having never left the hospital. This was only 4 years ago and my mum is now sick with worry, literally, about me. I am worried that I will never get back to how I am now, that I will become reliant on family and friends. Its usually me who helps the family with the children and my mum. I live alone but have family close by and my ex husband (who is my best friend) has been a great support. My family, bless them, are fussing around and not letting me do anything and I know I would be the same if I were in their shoes but I feel like an invalid although I should be grateful for their concern. I am feeling so confused, I refuse to cry about this and I am holding myself so tightly together but seeing my families tears is breaking me up. I am putting my 'healthy self' up for a life threatening, painful operation. Has anyone else been in a similar position and could give a few words of encouragement?
View 13 RepliesMy 19 yr old son was admitted to the hospital on Friday. His heart afib, His organs were failing as well. He was drinking very high caffeinated soda's as well as energy drinks daily allot of caffeine, Everyone told him to stop drinking so many. All he did was stay in his room playing video games or on the pc from 11 am til 5 am the next day. He ate well, rarely drank any water, then a month ago, he stopped eating, vomited anything he drank or ate. Then he started drinking a gal of water a day, or chewing on gum or candy. Was burping allot, then his heart was beating fast so we took him in. Now I'm told he has an enlarged heart. Where did this come from? He's the healthiest one in the family. He's had maybe three colds since birth. Could all the caffeine and other ingredients do this to him?
View 1 RepliesI'm 34 years old and I've been diagnosed with a swollen heart muscle. I've got a number of symptoms my GP believes are connected to the unknown underlying issue causing it (eg fluid in my lungs restricting my breathing, very low platelet count and heart palpitations). However, I'm on a 2-3 month waiting list for tests in the public hospital to determine the cause.
Does anyone know the main cause for a swollen/ enlarged heart muscle, and especially given my symptoms?
The Doctors have ruled out use of stimulants and blood pressure issues. They did mention the possibility of a diseased heart valve or perhaps a clogged artery.