Anyone have heart effects from their MS? I'm freaking out a bit here.

[elizabeth]

I'm curious...

I have lesions in my brain stem that affect my respiration -- i.e., I do not breathe consistently at night when I am asleep because my autonomic nervous system is somehow affected by the lesions so my supposedly involuntary functions don't always happen correctly. The way we are dealing with this for now is that I sleep with oxygen on, so that my saturation levels stay up high enough that I don't run into trouble.

Lately, though, I have started to have problems with my heart rhythm. I had a congenital heart defect (WPW syndrome - auxiliary electrical pathways) that I had surgery to fix when I was 36. I would cause my heart to flip into tachycardia - I'd go from 70 beats a minute to 246 and pass out because my blood pressure would bottom out. I got that fixed - no problems ever since.

Well, until last month. Now I am having PVC's (premature ventricular contractions) and a weird interval in my QT on the ECG. It's long because of medications - no sweat, really in terms of health issues. BUT my rhythm is screwy in a BIG way. My heart is also now averaging only 58 beats per minute at resting heart rate -- very low. I am NOT an uber athlete by any stretch. Last month I was at 62; the month before at 66-68; before that at 72. I am slowing down... waaaayyyyy down.

The electrophysiology guy said he's going to talk to my MS specialist, but who knows when that'll happen, and/or when I'll hear anything. In the meantime, I am having every test under the sun. Nuclear medicine is next on 10/17 followed by the 30 dya monitoring thingy right afterward.

I just want to know. Can lesions affect your heart rate, etc. like they can breathing? It would seem like they ought to be able to, since it's all there in the brain stem, but I am really sort of flying iwthout any real information from anyone. They all say "don't worry about it too much; let's see what's up." I know one thing that's NOT up, which is my heart rate... even when it should be! :rolleyes:

Any ideas? Any help? Any info anywhere I could look? Any help is gratefully accepted and appreciated.

Thanks very much. :)

[Bubbles]

I really don't know for sure Elizabeth, but in view of your history, I think it a really good idea to let the Doc know of any changes.

Having said that, I have had a few episodes of feeling awful, as though I could pass out, and when I take my pulse it's been in the 40's. I just try to stay calm , and I make myself cough to try and shake things up. It usually passes but is a bit scary at the time.

I too am no athlete and my normal pulse is around 80, I have a small lesion in the brainstem but no breathing problems. I have wondered if it's this thats causing the periodic very slow heart rate.

I'll be interested to find out if it could be MS related.

[Lyn]

I am quite the opposite to you - my heart races and often feels like it 'skips a beat' - I tend to get palpitations. After an operation a while ago, my heart rate rose to 178 - I had alarms going off everywhere. I had a doppler scan, and an ECG, but they only said I had 'early beats' (whatever that means).

I have recently had lots of times (especially when my MS fatigue is at its worst, or when waking up after a sleep that it starts going weird again. I had several brain stem lesions when I was first Dx'd, but they have pretty much faded to almost nothing now. My BP is great and my resting rate seems to run between 80-120.

Don't know what it all means, but I do know how darn uncomfortable it is for me. This must be pretty scary for you - so sorry you are having problems like this.

Lyn

[dizzyintx]

Hi Elizabeth!
Sorry to tell you this but, rarely it can. Most people with this problem have extreme dizziness when changing positions. I believe a tilt table test, will tell them some info but really there is not a definitive test for this. I could be wrong though.

On the MSF website Ask the Drs forum has had a few questions on this. My brother had WPW, so I know kinda what you are talking about there and also in Feb I had a quad bypass at the age of 47, so I've had to learn more about my heart.

As far as my own heart, the chemo that I took for ms (novantrone and cytoxan) did the damage. After the bypass I am left with a left Bundle branch block. Which is a heart pacing problem also. It's pretty scary so I know how you feel.

[0357]

My rate was 48 ... I too had No Reflexes and my eyes would Not dilate. Have you seen your neuro? Most importantly, have you seen your doctor with your past history? If I were you, I would start there.

If your problems are neurological, there is nothing they can do that I've been told. Hang in there and take it one day at a time.