aegisgfx wrote: ↑30 May 2023, 5:39pm
axel_knutt wrote: ↑30 May 2023, 5:34pmSo I sent all the ECGs to Professor Richard Schilling, one of the world's leading arrhythmia consultants, who confirmed it was indeed atrial flutter:
Im in Canada, would it cost a lot of money to get this guy to look at my results for a better opinion?
That report cost me £50 in 2016. I've been back to the same hospital (but not the same consultant) asking them to review test results on another matter, and they refused, saying "we don't do that sort of thing". In the light of what I posted above, my guess is that they've been warned off by the NHS. (He does work in the NHS, as well as private practice)
aegisgfx wrote: ↑30 May 2023, 5:50pm
axel_knutt wrote: ↑16 May 2023, 6:24pmIs it worth going on something like Diltiazem just to see if it helps?
I've stopped taking diltiazem because it's damaged my feet, I wouldn't be taking it voluntarily knowing what I know now. When you were discharged after the tests weren't you given any advice on what to do if it keeps happening?
I guess a better question is, are drugs a good idea at all considering this **only** happens when I do high levels of exertion/exercise, which Im doing a lot less of now than I did in the past. So if I only go out and bike 3 times a month now, is it worth taking drugs all the time for that?
Incidentally I have a severe form of central sleep apnea (diagnosed by so far untreated), and I can say the problems are very much worse when my sleep quality is poor.
Sleep apnoea is a documented
cause of AF (see the list of risk factors above). AIUI, central sleep apnoea, unilke obstructive SA, is a form of autonomic dysfunction; AF and overtraining syndrome are both forms of dysautonomia too.
aegisgfx wrote: ↑30 May 2023, 6:17pmIs it really worth taking calcium blockers all the time for something that only happens when I do very high exertion, which I might do now a couple times a month or less?
Diltiazem is what's known as a rate control drug, that is, it limits your maximum HR. Other drugs such as flecainide are rhythm control drugs, which are designed to prevent the arrhythmia and keep you heart in normal sinus rhythm. Is I mentioned above, my main need for it was to act as a safety back up in case the flecainide causes atrial flutter that leads to a dangerous ventricular rate. Whether there's much merit to it as a standalone drug I wouldn't know.
The problem with it is that it causes pitting oedema: your feet and lower legs become swollen because of fluid retention in the cells. For nearly a decade I thought this was fairly trivial and under control, so I was more than willing to put up with it as an alternative to the fatigue caused by beta blockers.
The problem with chronic oedema is that it causes damage to both the nerves and blood vessels, and in my case I hadn't really noticed the damage creeping up on me until one day last summer. I went out for a gentle walk, nothing unusual, and came home with horrendous full depth blisters, and the nerve damage was such that I didn't even notice any pain from them until they got to that stage. The skin on my feet seems all but dead, and now falls off at the slightest provocation without sufficient sensation to warn me what's happening.
I assume I'm now on the first rung of the ladder which leads to chronic ulcers and amputation.
Jdsk wrote: ↑30 May 2023, 6:14pm
Anxiety
This has been suggested and you've associated that with being inadequately investigated and your concerns being dismissed.
From what you've told us I can see why it's being considered as a possibility.
Jonathan
Is that likely when he's already been diagnosed with CSA?