Suggest Treatment For Shortness Of Breath Along With High Heart Rate And Brief Memory Loss

Posted on Wed, 24 Jun 2015

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 24 Jun 2015 Answered on

Wed, 15 Jul 2015 Last reviewed on

Question : Hello. my background: 30 y/o male. Typically zero health issues. 5'9" tall approx 160lbs, fairly active. I do drink too much (avg 6-8 beers a night for ~6-7 yrs..typically more on weekends). I am deployed overseas ~35% of the year and do not drink while deployed. I recently cut back on my alcohol intake before my current deployment. I also use smokeless tobacco. My only major health incident was severe hyponutremia that occurred while in the field (resulted in 1 week hospitalization approx 3-4 yrs ago. The bout included seizures and no recollection of about ~18-24 hrs of time). The doctors did admit to initially raising my sodium level too quickly.

Current health concerns: occasional breathlessness with increased heart rate which is worsened with activity but does also occur while idle. No noticed difference between sitting, lying down, etc. Recent brief short term memory loss (once a day for about 5 seconds...'where did I just out that item..?').

For 4 yrs now I noticed that when weight lifting I get light headed and out of breath and need about 30s between sets to regain breath. Now even stretching brings it on. However, recently I have run 5ks at maximum effort without any noticeable light headedness until finishing the run at a maxed out sprint.

I am currently deployed (shortest deployment I have been on...I am 5 weeks in to a 6 week trip). In relation to alcohol, I experience slight tremors for about a week but zero cravings when I deploy. Typically I am gone 3-4 months at a time.

I do not weight life while not deployed, so I am unsure if it the same issue always exists. I do not normally notice breathlessness stateside unless climbing a few sets of stairs. But daily activity and yard work never brought it on.
Family history: cardiac issues (maternal grandfather), diabetes (paternal grandmother), elderly aged strokes (maternal grandmother), blood clots (father)

No noted swelling or any other bodily issues. Often while deployed my hamstrings feel cramped and need to be stretched. Possibly due to all the time I spend in the cockpit.
What's going on? Thanks for taking the time to read the lengthy explanation!

Answered by Dr. Dr. Erion Spaho (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Most probably symptoms related to alchohol excess.

Detailed Answer:
Hello and thanks for using HCM.

I have read your query and understand your concerns.

According to your explanations, in my opinion, issues identified (shortness of breath, muscle cramps and recent memory problems) are related to excessive alcohol intake.

Shortness of breath and muscle problems cause is related to lactic acid high levels in blood because the metabolism of alchohol.

Due to increased lactic acid levels, there is a sort of muscle insufficiency including breathing muscles too.

Finishing a 5 km run without problems means that lactic acid levels are variable in blood and related to alchohol consumption.

Recent memory problems may be related to direct brain cells damage caused by alchohol.

Another possibility of brain damage could be related to fast correction of hyponatremia that may result in brain white matter damage ( myelinolisis) and alchohol use causes further brain damage.

Another point to consider about your concerns is the evaluation of liver function assessed by blood tests.

I believe it is understandable that stopping or reducing significantly alchohol consumption prevents progression of your symptoms and damages.

Hope I helped you. If you have further questions, feel free to ask, if not, you can close the conversation and rate the answer.

Take care.

Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Vinay Bhardwaj