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shortness of breath alternative to metropolol
Have history of vfib after exercising since 2010. Was on bystolic til 6/23. Have difibrilator. After bike ride in June of 23 got shocked and was put on sotolol and mexilitine. My resting hr of 60 was raised to 70 using pacemaker. In Feb of 2024 I experienced shocks without exercise. While in hospital Iwas taken off sotolol and put on amirodorone hcl 200mg, mexiletine 150 and metropolol succ 100mg.
Am now taking metropolol 2x daily for bp. Never helped with bp control. Am also on lisinopril 20 mg and amilodpine 2.5 mg. I have had shortness of breath for about 2 years since put on metropolol and it is getting worse. Cannot walk 100 feet with out gasping.
Question1 . Is blaming metropolol justified.
Question 2. Is there an alternative to metropolol for vfib managment
Had all the tests and all are fairly good. Was put on spironolactone 25 mg and felt normal for 2 days but effects wore off and back to shortness of breath,
Thanks for advise.
Bill
Question 2
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Maybe yes, maybe no. The issue could be metoprolol, in that it is keeping to heavy a lid on your HR when you need it higher, such as when you want to go for a walk. However, there could also be cardiomyopathy at play here, maybe valvular problems. Have you had a recent assessment of your ejection fraction? If you have enlarged ventricles, or thickened walls, scarring in their substrate or collagen deposits, or if you have stenosis or regurgitation the wrong way through one or more valves, these can all rob you of efficient pumping of sufficient volume to meet your needs. Sound to me like it's time for a new brain to take a cold and sober look at your heart function and structure for adverse morphology.
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2 ReactionsEjection is 55-60. Test done feb 26. On par with other tests from years
ago. Was told i do have cardiomyopathy but
suspiciously labs started to change 2/24. Labs fine from 10/10 to 2/24.
Thats when i started metropolol mexiletine and amidorone. Cardiologist ssid
i am fine to exercise. Is he on my life insurance? Need new brain. Correct
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1 ReactionForgot to include age 76. Used to do 10 to 20 mile bike rides with no
problem. Came to a halt when started taking meds.
@howard137
I don’t know if my experience with Metoprolol relates to yours, but I asked to try a different med for NSVT when Metoprolol prevented me from exercising without getting quickly short of breath. It simply prevented an increased heart rate which in turn prevented the necessary additional oxygen supply required to sustain exercise. I also believed Metoprolol was negatively affecting my sleep quality.
I was switched from Metoprolol to a calcium channel blocker called Verapamil- a long-acting capsule once a day in the morning. It will lower blood pressure( although I don’t need it for that function) so that needs to be watched. The top number( systolic ) should not drop below 100.
Sleep has improved too.
Maybe a med change would help you too. Good luck!
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3 Reactions@wcuro Thank you. Will ask my doctor about that drug but these guys are real sensitive.
@howard137
If they’re so sensitive you can’t ask questions, you really do need new brains on your team.
Also smaller egos-no room for you there.
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3 Reactions@howard137 I can sympathize. I went to my cardiologist for a regular visit about a year after he had prescribed metoprolol and told him I thought it was stunting my physical output. He said no, it's not the metoprolol. Bull pucky, dude. To his credit, though, he did say he wanted my to keep plugging away at physical fitness because that much of my existence was going to keep my heart in good form if not in great rhythm.
Thanks for comments. Hard to believe that 2nd and 3rd generation drugs arent being used. It may be that metropolol is the gold standard. I have given names of drugs bystolic and estril(?). Made mistake of mentioning to my cardiologist. Got the look of death instead of reason not to use. New doctor on the horizon. Thanks again.
@howard137 Metoprolol has been around for donkeys' years, it's safe (with cautions), well tolerated, and it has more than one use as good drugs tend to have. Not only is it good for keeping a lid on tachyarrhythmias, but it also helps with incipient hypertension due to its effect on myocyte function. In fact, my cardiologist made it a point to say that, since I was nearing the point where I needed some help with that anyway, metoprolol would do. Well.....so I guess I was right about it stunting my cardiac output after all? [...crickets...]
The caution is that, particularly as dosages are increased on otherwise fit and healthy hearts, the patient can begin to slide into the realm of bradycardia. This is well established and widely reported on heart health fora by patients who say they feel faint, get buzzing in their ears, have poorer or constricted field of view in their eyesight, feel short of breath, etc. We see that they were recently prescribed metoprolol or that their dose was increase by 25mg or more/day.
Thanks for info.