CJMANN1 Posted May 3, 2004 Report Share Posted May 3, 2004 Just wondering if everyone with POTS has heart problems? Or some other form of healt problem that can be related?Thanks,Jeni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merrill Posted May 3, 2004 Report Share Posted May 3, 2004 I posted this at the end of a different email chain ... but here are my ideas about your question:No, not everyone with POTS has heart problems--and here, I assume you mean structural problems with the heart. The tachycardia that comes from pots (the "T" in pots) is not considered a heart problem.I had a full battery of cardiac tests when I was diagnosed with POTS (via tilt table test, which is the diagnostic test) and other tests of the autonomic nervous system. They needed to determine the reason for my tachycardia and rule out inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST), cardiac conditions that can cause rapid heart rate, and other health problems (thyroid, tumor on adrenal gland, etc.) Mine was structurally sound and healthy and of normal size and all that. The heart's response to insufficient constriction of the veins in the legs upon standing (or even sitting up for some people), which is controlled by the autonomic nervous system, is to beat fast to get the blood back up to the brain and upper extremities. Sometimes the heart's response can be exaggerated, beating faster than it would need to. (It's all rather complicated...) And I know that some people with POTS do have structural problems with the heart and other heart conditions. But it is certainly not the case that everyone with pots has heart problems.For a number of people (and perhaps in your case), surgery can be a trigger for pots symptoms; statistically, these people get better in a few years. Hope this helps,Merrill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMouse Posted May 4, 2004 Report Share Posted May 4, 2004 Other than tachycardia, nope, some people have nothing else wrong. For example, I have POTS but have no heart problems other than tachy. However, I have a host of other relate problems, most of which involve my GI system.Nina Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb Posted May 4, 2004 Report Share Posted May 4, 2004 No, I don't have any heart problems, either, except for the tachycardia and orthostatic hypotension. I had all the tests that Merrill had, and all of my organs are as healthy as a twenty-year old's. (I think they were being kind.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgan617 Posted May 5, 2004 Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 i do have heart problems, but i don't have pots. i have malignant hypertension caused by dysautonomia, so kind of a different set of problems caused by same system. morgan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJMANN1 Posted May 10, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2004 Sorry it has taken me so long to respond...I was in the hospital. But thank you to all of you for your info. I had an ablation done on my heart 9 years ago and have struggled every since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khudsonwv Posted May 11, 2004 Report Share Posted May 11, 2004 I was diagnosed originally with PSTV, STV. inappropriate sinus tach, afib and aflutter - this after the birth of my second child.. i too had 1 ablasion last June and 9 in July - became even sicker - then diagnosed with 3rd degree heart block and now a permanent pace maker .. was diagnosed with POTS last month - i think the ablasions may have been the nail in my coffin - i have never felt worse and am unable to tolerate any meds.. i wish i would have known about POTS sooner.....and am soo thankful that i found this site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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