ICD with Beta Blockers

Greetings
I'm new here so first of all a bit of background. I'm a 61yo male who has been an avid endurance athlete for the past 30+ yrs. Marathon runner and now cyclist. After my second V Tach episode (22 monts apart} I had an ICD implanted a week ago after they were unable to correct the arythmia with an ablation. At the moment I'm on Metoprolol Tartrate 12.5 mg twice a day. My concern is the effect the BB's will have on my ability to exercise. I would appreciate hearing from others experience with this. Another question. is it unheard of to be weaned off the BB's if there is no recurance of the arythmia? I don't have high BP and my resting heart rate is normally in the mid 40's.

9 Comments

Hi Cruzer................

by Tattoo Man - 2013-08-29 04:08:13


................lets face it..its a bummer to need a device of any kind wedged into your thorax.

Its a different kind of bummer to have a device crammed in when you see yourself as ' fit guy,' who all around you, kind of see you as the kind of chap that, some how does the exercise to 'cushion' their own lack of fitness.

When do you stop being ..'The Fit Guy...?'

S++t..what do I know..?..just your average runner with a history of a best 10 mile time trial of 22.27 on the bike.

Kiddo, its time to rethink, re-trench, re-evaluate....now that you are 'fixed'..it might be time to set new goals.

Personal Bests might not be the goal..( or why not ..? )

Personal Bests might be evaluated on a different set of values......Quality...Fun....Vitality...Engagement...

You are two whole years younger than me....I would kill to be so young....

Two days ago , post open heart surgery and two pacemakers I did my 76th running race since March '07

This is not a challenge..but..hey..if your Doc is ok with it then.............

Run like the wind !!!

Tattoo Man






Hi there

by Salt - 2013-08-29 08:08:10

I'm dealing with the exercise piece, as well, so I thought I'd chime in. I'm 57, female, and have been running since I was 25. Just moderate "jogging", but it has helped keep me fit all these years, and I have run my share of road races. I had a pacemaker implanted in December, based on a heart rate in the 30s, and it was replaced with an ICD in April, due to both some ventricular tachycardia and a complicated genetic mutation that is in my family, and caused two sudden deaths in 2012. I am also on metropolol, but love the calming effect it has on me :)

Now that I'm relatively healthy (I also went through chemo in 2011 for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma), I'm frustrated with my running. I'm paced pretty much 100%, so my heart rate doesn't go above the preset rate of 120 when I run. It's not really enough "steam" to keep me going, and I usually alternate 4 minutes of running with 1 minute of walking. So, I'm replying because it's caused me to face a changed self-image as a runner. I'm not the runner I was, and I don't think I ever will be. I don't get faster or stronger anymore. I do think it's the ICD and not the beta blocker, although I could be wrong.

I'm gradually changing my expectations for myself, and telling myself that I'm damn lucky that I'm even alive, never mind able to run. But it's a difficult transition; so much of my self-pride has always been wrapped up in being a runner for so many years.

Oh, and as to your question about being weaned off the metropolol, my cardiologist is willing to do that, if I want, since the ICD will address any tachycardia. But as I said, I really, really love the lessening of adrenaline caused by the BB. For years, I have had a fib and other heart rhythm issues caused by the mutation, and it is such a blessing that between the ICD and the BB, I don't have a pounding, irregular heart roaming around my chest!

Sorry for the long post! This is a great place, and I believe this may be my first or second post!

Sue

working out with beta blockers

by Tracey_E - 2013-08-29 09:08:38

If the episode lasted long enough to try ablating, you may have a hard time convincing them to let you go off it but it can't hurt to have the discussion. Sometimes we really do need it, other times the drs throw prescriptions at us as a panacea and don't really think through the side effects or necessity.

I am on a similar one, atenolol, have been for 3 years now. I used to race when I work out, my atrial rate got higher than the pm can pace the ventricles, so I couldn't really exercise without it. I fought it but it just got too frustrating stopping every few minutes to let my hr come down so I realized I wasn't really getting a good workout. If I dropped the gym I could probably go off it but I'm not willing to do that.

I do Crossfit. I can definitely tell a difference and I do feel the bb holds me back, but I don't let it stop me. I remind myself that without it I can't work out at all so suck it up buttercup :) I may be the slowest and the last done many days, but I *do* finish and I figure that puts me ahead of most of the population. Stamina is my biggest problem. Some days we do workouts that are push/recover/push/recover so there are rests, I can go all day long on those. Today was 25min pushing hard (pull ups, jump rope, squats with a med ball and get-ups with a sandbag), no rest. I took rests anyway! I just can't go that long.

Sue

by Tracey_E - 2013-08-29 09:08:58

Can they put you higher than 120? That could be an easy fix. I pace up to 175. They may not want you going higher than that considering your family history, but it can't hurt to ask because that 120 is not all the pm can do.

TraceyE

by Salt - 2013-08-29 10:08:12

I'll ask next time I go, but I have a feeling they won't go much higher. The family history is driving a lot of our treatment, at this point, which is fine. But I will ask. Thanks for pointing that out.

Thanks for the replys

by Cruzer - 2013-08-29 10:08:55

This is all new to me and I'm just starting to get things sorted out. I've only had the ICD for a week but I can say I don't like the way the Metoprolol makes me feel. I'm thinking Coreg or Propranolol might be options. A lot of good info here helps to know what lies ahead.

Metoprolol

by ohiolaura - 2013-08-29 11:08:09

I was on it after my PM surgery,not right away,left hospital with sleeping aid and anxiety med,both of which I didn't need before,which I didn't like,anyways......
After 10 days,went back into ER,pacer ended up needing adjusted for me,and I was having issues with anxiety and such,so local cardio put me on Met stuff.
It seemed to help,but did make me sluggish.I stayed on it,low dose,like 25 mg maybe, for 5-6 months,then lessened it,talked to main EP's nurse first,told me I could try to wean down.
I went back to working out 6 weeks after surgery,spinning 1x a week for a hour, and other cardio work about 5 days a week, the med seemed to make it tougher for me to get a good enough work out in.
So over time,like 6 weeks,I went down in medication amount,til I was off.
Dr said it was ok for me,and I know I felt better off of it.
But that's me,I hope I don't have to go back on it again,or anything,I love being drug free,and feeling good.
Good luck,be smart and make sure you do what you need to do for your body.
Laura

Beta Blockers.

by Selwyn - 2013-08-30 03:08:42

The majority of people manage life on beta blockers without any complaints. Until you exercise you will not know the effect the medication has on your exercise capacity. As a by the way, there is no doubt that heavy exercise is associated with sudden death. As Tattoo Man has said, you may wish to consider the meaning of being fit?

Personally, beta blockers ( sotolol) enabled me to swim 3/4s of a length, when normally I would swim a mile without trouble. There are always alternatives to a beta blocker ( used first line as the benefits outweigh the risks). The standard practice is to wean patients off beta blockers on stopping them as you can get 'rebound' problems if stopped suddenly! This includes tachycardias!!

I was weaned off my beta blockers, take an alternative 2 medications, and have swum 100 lengths today. The majority of people are quite happy with beta blockers. It is all about tailoring medication to the individual ( both type, dose, and side effects) .

Do let us know how you get on. Good luck.


metoprolol

by Tracey_E - 2013-08-30 09:08:15

I was on metoprolol for 5 weeks and did not do well at all, switched to atenolol. They say it takes 6-8 weeks to get used to being on it and to feel good. I kept calling and saying the side effects were bad, doc said try to wait out the 6 weeks because it will get better. I was basically drunk on it! In hindsight I shouldn't even have been driving. I was dizzy, my brain was in a fog, I was very tired. When I tripped over nothing in my kitchen and broke my foot, I threw the bottle away and said they could call in something new! I was tired a lot at first on the atenolol but eventually got used to it. We're all different. Others have problems with atenolol but do great on metoprolol, but just about everyone deals with side effects the first weeks, that's normal.

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