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Dr. Stoll,
Thanks so much for all your help so far. I will persist in trying to find a doctor who can help me with all this so I don't have to keep bugging you.
One more question if you don't mind? Do you believe these pvc's are dangerous? I read so many articles about sudden death from cardiac arrhythmias and it has me so scared, especially since my body is dealing with a pregnancy, and a birth in 4 months. Why do some doctors say they are benign (you say they are not dangerous) and some sources say they can lead to sudden death? Help!
Renee
In Reply to: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 02, 2004 at 08:00:49:
Hello Renee,
I know how scarey pvc's can be. I was having quite a few of them about 6 months ago, and I had all sorts of heart tests done and nothing was wrong.....except I had a very low potassium level and when I started taking supplements, the pvc's went away. If you've had heart tests done and nothing has shown up, then may potassium and/or magnesium supplementation could help get rid of them. If you're pregnant tho, be careful what you take. Discuss it with your doctor first. If you have copies of your last blood work, the potassium level should be on that report. The normal levels are 3.5 to 5.5. Mine was below 3.5
good luck !
In Reply to: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 02, 2004 at 08:00:49:
Hi Renee, you concern is understandable, and I hope you find a trustworthy
doc soon to help you through this. I am not a cardiologist & cannot advise
you, but I did want to tell you that any kind of hormonal shift can easily
trigger pvcs. I went through this went I entered perimenopause, and it was
very alarming. At the time, the cardiologist told me I had a blood sodium
imbalance, and the treatment was to add more salt to my diet. It worked like
a charm. He never said what may have caused the imbalance to begin with,
but I know it was hormones. Now, as I move towards menopause, my heart
will get arrhythmic right before my period, and only then. In fact, it's often
how I know a period's on its way, since they've become pretty irregular lately.
Good luck with this, I know it's frightening, but my guess is, you'll be OK.
mary
In Reply to: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 02, 2004 at 08:00:49:
Thanks, Renee.
There are MANY causes of PVCs and most of them are of no immediate consequence. You do have better things to worry about. However, looking for the most common causes (like stress storage, low intracellular magnesium or serum potassium) is not a waste of time.
ONLY those for whom PVCs are an early warning of impending heart attacks, are at risk and THAT has to be determined by routine diagnostic efforts by the doc; this makes up the vast minority of those with PVCs.
Hope this helps.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: pvc's (in perspective) Archive. posted by Walt Stoll [9.8] on December 03, 2004 at 06:41:01:
Dr. Stoll,
Thank you for all of your advice and encouragement. I wanted to update you. I have found the most wonderful doctor, thanks to you. I can't believe I have been so blessed to find someone in my small town. She already knew and understood everything I talked about, and agrees with you about everything! She has agreed to the testing, magnesium treatments (which she has done many times in the past), and is also going to test my serotonin level to see if that is helping to cause my anxiety.
I just wanted to let you know how thankful I am that I found you. The way you encourage people to take charge of their own health is wonderful. Instead of just giving everyone answers, your style kind of forces people to become their own health expert, which is so important.
As a side note, since seeing the doctor, my pvc's have lessened quite a bit (surprise, huh?). I still think I will need the magnesium, but I'm sure that anxiety has caused much of my problem.
Thank you again. I will keep you posted, if you would like. If everything is successful, I would like to be one of the people who posts a positive testimonial so that my story can help others with similar problems.
Renee
In Reply to: Re: pvc's (in perspective) Archive. posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 03, 2004 at 08:10:47:
Thanks, Renee.
Congratulations on your "find".
Let us know how you do. Where are you from? Perhaps I know this practitioner personally.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: pvc's (in perspective) Archive. TESTIMONIAL in progress. posted by Walt Stoll [9.8] on December 04, 2004 at 06:24:45:
Dr. Stoll,
The Doctor's name is Emilia Eiras (pronounced iris). I live in Jackson, New Jersey. I usually go at least 2 towns away to find a doctor I feel comfortable with. I got lucky this time. I can't wait to find out the results of the magnesium test. I am praying it is low so it can explain my problem.
Again, thank you for all your help. I will keep you posted!
Renee
In Reply to: Re: pvc's (in perspective) Archive. TESTIMONIAL in progress. posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 04, 2004 at 12:22:09:
Thanks, Renee.
Remember that even the intracellular tests now available are not as accurate as a therapeutic trial.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: pvc's (in perspective) Archive. TESTIMONIAL in progress. posted by Walt Stoll [9.8] on December 05, 2004 at 06:36:09:
Dr. Stoll,
Thanks again for the input on the testing. I agree. I hope I don't have to push for the trial if the testing comes back normal. I hope the doctor agrees with you and I on this.
Especially since I'm pregnant, I don't want to take a chance with preterm labor because my magnesium level is low.
I'll keep you posted.
Renee
In Reply to: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 02, 2004 at 08:00:49:
Dr. Stoll,
I just found out that my magnesium level is supposedly normal. I am very disappointed to find this out. This test,apparently, was done by a local lab, and was a red blood cell level test. Is this what you mean when you say intracellular? Can this possibly be accurate? I also want to know if you think that all the magnesium supplements that I have been taking (in small dosages because of absorption problems) could have thrown off the results of the test.
Thanks for your reply.
Renee
PS. All these questions are aside from the fact that I know you will say to do the therapeutic trial anyway. Thanks!
In Reply to: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 02, 2004 at 08:00:49:
Dr. Stoll,
A follow up to my follow up. In the archives, I noticed that there is a "serum" magnesium test, which also said "RBC",
and an RBC level which you said was an intracellular test. I'm confused. My doctor now believes I do not have a deficiency if this RBC level came back normal. She is hesitating to do the magnesium IV or IM. (She said she likes to do IM) is IM ok, too? Still 3 times a week for 2 weeks?
Thanks, I guess I'm back to square one.
Renee
In Reply to: Re: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 06, 2004 at 13:49:48:
Yes, Renee.
Now the question is: "How long have they been doing the test and how many do they do every day?" This is not the easiest test to do and there are so few docs who know to order it, your local lab probably is not very good at doing it.
You are right in that I am going to suggest the therapeutic trial anyhow. Even in long time experienced labs, the intracellular magnesium test is not nearly as accurate as the therapeutic trial.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: pvc's posted by Renee [932.1366] on December 06, 2004 at 14:04:38:
Thanks, Renee.
The IV magnesium is MUCH safer than the IM since one can stop the injection if the patient has a hyperreactive response to the magnesium and the response stops immediately.
With the IM, the whole dose is IN THERE and the hyperreactive response continues for days. Any doc who says this is not experienced with giving this and has not given it any thought. Besides, the IM route is painful and the IV is not.
Hyperreactive response to magnesium is so rare that, I would not worry about IM if I had no other way to get it.
Walt
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