Just going as a precautionary, as I've had a lot of chest pains since I was DX with lyme disease and I wanna make sure they are unrelated to the heart....
Just hoping to get some pointers from lymies that have gone before me, I am a little worried about it. The heart stuff is the one thing i am paranoid about.
Posted by astriapage (Member # 17120) on :
I would advise you to ask him if all of your valves etc. are functioning ok.
I had a cardilogist that was not very concerned and I kept having problems and after doing an echo discovered I was about to have conjestive heart failure because of severe mitral damage.
Some of your pain can be from anxiety because I continue to have pain after my open heart surgery-
but it is mainly when I get anxious or overworked.
If you feel like something is not right then push that point.
I almost died from a doctor not listening to me.
I am still very sick, I guess from Lyme disease.
I do not know why doctors have to be so stubborn.
Posted by Cadames62008 (Member # 16275) on :
I see a cardiologist and what he did was give me a echocardiograph and I wear a holter monitor.
The holter monitor you wear for a month and you trigger it to record if you are having chest pain or rapid beat
it is like a ekg everytime you trigger it so they can see what your heart is doing.
This is the second time I'm wearing one because I do have palputations and they wanna see...
there talking cathedor for me
Posted by TheTruth (Member # 17100) on :
It really depends on what your symptoms are. How old are you? Is the chest pain at rest or with exertion? Are you able to walk, climb stairs, or run without chest pain or shortness of breath? Is the chest pain reproducible (i.e. pushing on particular spot or taking a deep breath recreates the pain). Have you had an ekg?
Valvular damage, as a previous person suggested, would not present with chest pain, so that isn't applicable.
Posted by Hoosiers51 (Member # 15759) on :
I wouldn't say TOO much about the Lyme, because you want to see what he/she comes up with on their own.
Good luck!
Posted by IMHisda (Member # 6998) on :
Check out the Michigan Lyme Disease Association website for cardiac symptoms listed and make sure they get a copy. My cardiologist really appreciated it (Lyme literate).
Posted by shoney (Member # 9925) on :
Where on the webite did you find cardiac symptoms-I couldn't find them
Posted by sixgoofykids (Member # 11141) on :
quote:Originally posted by Hoosiers51: I wouldn't say TOO much about the Lyme, because you want to see what he/she comes up with on their own.
Good luck!
Ditto.
Posted by disturbedme (Member # 12346) on :
I agree with the others. Try not to bring up your lyme diagnosis and just let him/her see what they come up with.
I'm glad you are doing this and I hope it gives you some solace and reassurance that it is just the lyme.
I've had problems with my heart as well, like palps and tachycardia and shortness of breath, and hearing my heart beat in my head loudly, etc. Stuff like that. I've been to numerous cardiologists about it.
I've had at least five EKGS, three echocardiograms, and I've worn a holter monitor for three or four days even. Everything always came back normal except for tachycardia - the holter even showed sinus tachycardia at times up to 149 bmp even though I was at rest, etc. They always tell me it's normal though, which I don't get at all...
The most recent echo I've had done (over a year and a half ago) showed that I had a small amount of regurgitation (where one of the valves doesn't shut tightly, so some blood leaks backward) which just means your heart works harder sometimes. Not great, but I was told that it's nothing huge to worry about and that most people actually have this. I was also told it was not the cause of my tachycardia or palpitations, and there was no real cause for why I was having them (except for the lyme, of course).
Now, my new LLMD that I just saw in August said he heard a murmur while listening to my heart. He said it was a very quiet one and very hard to hear... said that most tests wouldn't even pick it up because it's so quiet and doesn't happen except every few beats or whatever.
I am thinking I should go back to my cardiologist and have a checkup... I haven't had an EKG or echo for about a year and a half... it would probably be good to see if anything has changed.
I also thought I'd add that I was prescribed Toprol by my cardiologist for the palps and tachycardia that I have. It did help, but my antibiotic treatment has helped more. For a while even I was able to stop taking the Toprol. Then when I started Bactrim plus Biaxin together a few months ago, that started the palps and tachycardia going again and I'm back on the Toprol.