Guest guest Posted September 17, 2004 Report Share Posted September 17, 2004 > , > > Are you on a calcium channel blocker or anything else in addition to > flecainide? Thanks. > -- > Kathleen Stept (Dofetilide 250mcg bid, Diltiazem 120 mg, Coumadin 5mg, baby > aspirin), , Mississippi Kathleen: No calcium channel blocker (flecainide is a sodium channel blocker). Below is my complete list: Flecainide (anti-arrhythmic) 150mg x2 Diovan (lowers blood pressure)160mg Lipitor (lowers cholesterol) 10mg Aspirin (anti-inflamatory and anti-coagulant) 325mg Calcium supplement 630mg Magnesium Oxide 250mg Fish Oil concentrate, 1000mg multi-vitamin daily glass of red wine (maintains my sanity) , Charlotte NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 18, 2004 Report Share Posted September 18, 2004 > Is flecainide a rhythm control drug? And is it normally paired with a beta > blocker? Thanks! > -- > Kathleen Stept (Dofetilide 250mcg bid, Diltiazem 120 mg, Coumadin 5mg, baby > aspirin), , Mississippi > Kathleen: I think we, as a group, are guilty of a simplistic search for an afib " magic bullet " ; that if we just asked enough people we can find an easy cure. We are all different... there may not be a " normal pairing " . We pay our doctors to evaluate each of us as individuals, and what is appropriate for me may not be " normal " or even safe for someone else. But in my specific case, no, flecainide is not paired with a beta blocker. I already have a slow heart rate (and because my afib is probably more vagal), a beta blocker is not appropriate, and might even make my afib more likely. , Charlotte NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 18, 2004 Report Share Posted September 18, 2004 Thanks, . I asked my EP about flecainide and he felt that I would have side effects similar to the ones I didn¹t like about Toprol. So, I didn¹t push for it. It¹s so hard to know what to do. Seems as if it¹s all about trial and error. -- Kathleen Stept (Dofetilide 250mcg bid, Diltiazem 120 mg, Coumadin 5mg, baby aspirin), , Mississippi > >> > Is flecainide a rhythm control drug? And is it normally paired > with a beta >> > blocker? Thanks! >> > -- >> > Kathleen Stept (Dofetilide 250mcg bid, Diltiazem 120 mg, Coumadin > 5mg, baby >> > aspirin), , Mississippi >> > > Kathleen: > I think we, as a group, are guilty of a simplistic search for an > afib " magic bullet " ; that if we just asked enough people we can find > an easy cure. We are all different... there may not be a " normal > pairing " . We pay our doctors to evaluate each of us as individuals, > and what is appropriate for me may not be " normal " or even safe for > someone else. But in my specific case, no, flecainide is not paired > with a beta blocker. I already have a slow heart rate (and because my > afib is probably more vagal), a beta blocker is not appropriate, and > might even make my afib more likely. > , Charlotte NC > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 18, 2004 Report Share Posted September 18, 2004 > Is flecainide a rhythm control drug? And is it normally paired with a beta > blocker? Thanks! > -- > Kathleen Stept (Dofetilide 250mcg bid, Diltiazem 120 mg, Coumadin 5mg, baby > aspirin), , Mississippi Yes, flecainide is a rhythm control med. My cardio has me on Flec (100mgx2) and Toprol (50mgx1). My understanding is that the Toprol lessens the potential for LQTS (Long QT Syndrome) which can be an issue with flecainide. The Toprol also lowers my bp effectively. I got the impression that my cardio did not want me taking the flecainide by itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 18, 2004 Report Share Posted September 18, 2004 I also take flecainide with a beta blocker - 150mg flecainide twice a day and 25mg metoprolol once a day. Its my understanding that the beta blocker is to counter possible pro-arrhythmic affects of the flecainide. My side effects are visual in nature, along with other effects that I attribute to the beta blocker. My blood pressure is in the low range as it is, and it is 90/60 with this combo. I have found that the timing of dosing is important for me. I time the doses so that I place the peak plasma level of the beta blocker during sleep time, and the peak levels of flecainide at times where it doesn't effect me as much. I take the flecainide and metoprolol at midnight (my bed time) and the other flecainide at noon. That way my mornings are clear and I feel my best. Originally I would take my evening meds at bedtime and the next dose around 8AM - and that was relatively bad for my mornings as I had higher levels in my system in the late morning. Without meds I am in NSR 24/7. I chave been controlled by flecainide for over seven years, with one 3 or 4 hour episode every 1.5 to 2 years or so! It is my " magic bullet " for now. The side effects at this point are near negligible. I don't even think of them any more. > > > Is flecainide a rhythm control drug? And is it normally paired > with a beta > > blocker? Thanks! > > -- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 19, 2004 Report Share Posted September 19, 2004 Kat wrote: <<Then if it easier for vent. arrhythmias to occur is that where one is more likely to see SVT or are SVT associated more with Atrial.>> Kat, in this case the S in SVT stands for " supra " ventricle tach which is just another way to say " above the ventricles tach " and we all know what that means - the ATRIUM! So SVT refers to an atrial arrhythmia. Both atrial flutter and atrial fib belong to this class of arrhythmias. - OU alum in MI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 19, 2004 Report Share Posted September 19, 2004 Trudy wrote: <<I asked my old cardio, does supraventricular mean the atria, and she said there is other stuff up there.>> Yes indeed there is other stuff up there, including the left atrial appendage, the primary location for forming blood clots while we are in afib. - OU alum in MI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 19, 2004 Report Share Posted September 19, 2004 Regarding the subjects below............SVT is an atrial arrhythmia... See the following: " The heart has 4 chambers. The 2 upper chambers are called atria (A- tree-uh), the 2 lower chambers are known as ventricles (VEN-trick- uls). When the heart " " beats,'' the atria push blood into the ventricles and the ventricles push blood out of the heart. Valves control the flow of blood from the atria to the ventricles. Supraventricular tachycardia (sup-ruh-ven-TRICK-u-ler tack-uh-CARD-e- uh) is also called atrial tachycardia or SVT. It is a very fast heart rate of 140 to 250 beats per minute (normal is about 70 to 80 beats per minute). It usually starts suddenly. Your doctor will try to find out the cause of the fast heart rate. Whether the cause is found or not, you may still need to take medicine to control the problem. However, you will still be able to live a normal life. " Hope this helps. Lee > > > QT refers to the interval in time between the Q and > > > T waves in the QRST > > > portion of an EKG. When that period of time is > > > lengthened, it makes it > > > more difficult for atrial arrhythmias to start up. > > > Unfortunately, the > > > longer the QT interval, the EASIER it is for > > > ventricle arrhythmias to > > > start up. And ventricular arrhythmias are generally > > > much more serious > > > than atrial. > > > > > Hi - OU alum in MI > > > > > > That make sense. Here is another question. Then if > > it easier for vent. arrhythmias to occur is that where > > one is more likely to see SVT or are SVT associated > > more with Atrial. Maybe it depends on each particular > > persons AF? Just a thought! > > > Kat, I think SVT stands for supraventricular tachycardia, which means > originating above the ventricles, so my guess is it is not a > ventricular thing, although whether the QT interval is involved, I dunno. > > I asked my old cardio, does supraventricular mean the atria, and she > said there is other stuff up there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 11, 2004 Report Share Posted November 11, 2004 > Does anyone have info regarding exercising when on flecainide? I am > being swapped from atenolol due to the nasty side effects (total > fatigue etc). My afib is often triggered by exercise and I have been > unable to do much at all the last few months although previously > (until afib) was a keen surfer and am really wanting to get back > into the ocean.(41yr old female) I was on flecainide for about 6 months. I exercised a lot during that time. My afib was also triggered by exercise and it helped a bit. I have since moved to Sotalol which helps more and nearly always stops me going into Afib when exercising, though it took a month or so to have a positive effect. Flecainide usually has fewer side effects so you would probably feel a lot better on it. My cardio was very keen I continue the exercise, but it would be worth checking with yours. If he's OK then go for it, I envy you having a warm enough ocean! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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