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What Causes Heart Palpitations After Eating, Sleep Apnea And Acid Reflux?

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Posted on Tue, 28 Jun 2016
Question: my issue is heart palpitations when i eat, or any mild activity or become excited. they don't happen on an empty stomach or when I lie down on my back. I believe it may be related to low tone vagus nerve. I take an anti histamine for anxiety caused by this. I also have acid reflux. I also have severe sleep apnea which I use cpap. my carbon dioxide levels are normal. I believe this is both Vagal efferant and afferant. am I low in acetylcholine or a possible hormone imbalance of npy,ghrh,igf-1,parathyroid,etc.
my tsh is normal. I have also taken gaba recently as well tried a magnetic device that was supposed to relax me, but it may have over stimulated my vagus and now my heart is out of rythmn during increased hr. lastly. I also hurt my wrist in a bicycle accident where I fell on my hand. I was thinking nerve damage could be stimulating my nervous system. before all this began. I had an muscle spasm under my left pectoral that lasted for three days. also a twitch above my left eyebrow for a few days. what is going on? I have attached my blood work. I am aware of my lipid issue. I am taking steps, so please stay on point with my pvcs issue.
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Answered by Dr. Ilir Sharka (4 hours later)
Brief Answer:
I would explain as follows:

Detailed Answer:
Hello!

Welcome back on HCM!

I carefully passed through your question and your performed tests and would explain that all your tests are perfectly normal, except for your blood lipid profile, which does not seem to be related to your symptoms.

A thyroid dysfunction has been excluded as well.

Coming to this point, I would recommend you to closely monitor your blood pressure and heart rate after eating or when lying down and standing up, in order to investigate for possible orthostatic intolerance and post-prandial hypotension.

A head Up Tilt test would be necessary to exclude such disorder.

It is important also performing an ambulatory 24-48 hours ECG monitoring to examine your heart rhythm trends for a prolonged time and exclude possible cardiac arrhythmia.

When did you perform your last cardiac ultrasound? Was it normal?

Regarding your twitches and musculuar spasms, I would recommend checking your magnesium plasma levels, which could be related to this symptomatology.

An EEG would also be helpful exclude possible myoclonic jerks. A nerve conduction study after a neurological exam would also be necessary to examine the integrity of your peripheral nerves (jerks are a symptom of peripheral nerve damage as well).

If all the above tests result normal, you should consider anxiety as the main cause of your symptoms.

You should discuss with your doctor on the above issues.

Hope you will find this answer helpful!

I am at your disposal if you have any other questions whenever you need!

Kind regards,

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

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. Ilir Sharka

Cardiologist

Practicing since :2001

Answered : 9542 Questions

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What Causes Heart Palpitations After Eating, Sleep Apnea And Acid Reflux?

Brief Answer: I would explain as follows: Detailed Answer: Hello! Welcome back on HCM! I carefully passed through your question and your performed tests and would explain that all your tests are perfectly normal, except for your blood lipid profile, which does not seem to be related to your symptoms. A thyroid dysfunction has been excluded as well. Coming to this point, I would recommend you to closely monitor your blood pressure and heart rate after eating or when lying down and standing up, in order to investigate for possible orthostatic intolerance and post-prandial hypotension. A head Up Tilt test would be necessary to exclude such disorder. It is important also performing an ambulatory 24-48 hours ECG monitoring to examine your heart rhythm trends for a prolonged time and exclude possible cardiac arrhythmia. When did you perform your last cardiac ultrasound? Was it normal? Regarding your twitches and musculuar spasms, I would recommend checking your magnesium plasma levels, which could be related to this symptomatology. An EEG would also be helpful exclude possible myoclonic jerks. A nerve conduction study after a neurological exam would also be necessary to examine the integrity of your peripheral nerves (jerks are a symptom of peripheral nerve damage as well). If all the above tests result normal, you should consider anxiety as the main cause of your symptoms. You should discuss with your doctor on the above issues. Hope you will find this answer helpful! I am at your disposal if you have any other questions whenever you need! Kind regards, Dr. Iliri