Query

Can the use of Toprol or Cardizem during the holding period awaiting an ablation and/or implant do irreparable damage to the heart or the heart's electrical system? It seems the longer I am on either one of those the worse I feel And I think it has something to do with depressing my heart rate. Although I have a strong beat, I checked my pulse at 10:00 this morning, mid way through the morning work schedule and after four or five cups of coffee and all I could get was 48bpm. Admittedly my work is somewhat sedentary but I am up and down out of my chair every ten to fifteen minutes. And would a minor aching in the area of my heart be caused by that low rate? I am sixty years old and not an athlete and very, very slightly over weight if any of that matters. Thanks for your thoughts!

4 Comments

Drug Side Effects

by ebfox - 2013-09-13 03:09:08

Both of these drugs are designed to slow your heart rate; having a rate of 48 is not surprising however you need to call your doctor and see if your dosage needs to be adjusted. Forty eight may be too slow.

I cannot address your "aching" question but that is another thing to ask your doctor.

FWIW, both of these drugs list "fatigue" as a side effect. I took cardizem after my mini-maze surgery (due to post op flutter) and it made me feel like crap. Toprol is a beta blocker and it is not unusual to have low energy when you are taking any beta blocker.

I doubt very seriously that either would damage your heart but give your doctor a call; he may want to reduce your dosage.

Good luck on your surgery,

E. B.

For Cryin' out loud...

by donr - 2013-09-14 01:09:24

...Get off the coffee - unless it is DeCAF> Your heart does not need the stimulation that the caffeine gives it & that is a very powerful stimulant.

It can drive it nutso w/ causing arrhythmias.

Yes, all that info matters. The small aching is NOT something to be ignored by a 60 yr old man.

Unless that aching has a loooooong history of known to be nothing, you need to address that w/ your cardio.

Don

Thanks for the replies

by rfassett - 2013-09-14 08:09:00

Don, so I have been told. Here is the scenario with no excuses. I have been a heavy coffee drinker since my late teens. Heavy in the sense of ten cups per day would be normal during the summer and fourteen or more in the winter. (I have often joked that if I was ever commanded to get off of coffee, my ticker would immediately begin slowing and continue until it just stopped.) I don't know whether our bodies adapt to things like the heavy intake of coffee. I told my cardio how much I drink and his response was "wow, that's a lot of coffee". And that was it. This past spring, while being on Toprol, I reduced my caffeine intake by one third. I eventually began having cognitive skill and communication skill issues. For example, I could not verbalized a thought before the thought was gone. Went to my GP and she ordered an MRI of my brain and some immediate blood work because no one wanted to believe me that it was the combination of the Toprol and the reduced caffeine. Brain scan revealed nothing nor did the blood work. GP sent me to a neurologist (who has a device BTW) who did a complete work up including more blood work and he concluded the issues had to do with decreased level of caffeine. During this process, I took my pulse at lunch one day and it was 42bpm - in the middle of the day! I went back to my normal coffee intake and the cognitive and communication skills issues went away.

So I believe the cognitive and communication issues were the result of bradycardia being brought on by the Toprol and reduced caffeine. Should I get a PM next month, which would fix the bradycardia, I plan to get off the coffee then because the stimulation I am getting from the coffee now will be provided by the PM.

Good Grief!!!!!

by donr - 2013-09-14 10:09:17

That's what I'd call ADDICTION!

I am not a coffee drinker at all. I can drink 1 cup & tell the stimulation difference. Really increases HR & arrhythmias.

C'mon others, need some more input to this discussion.

His argument seems to be rational - though I'd say dangerous from the heavy load of caffeine.

Wish you the best in this venture into uncharted territory.

Don

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