AFIB and the Stomach

Im still on the "There is some underlying reason" RANT.

anyway is it just me or does everyone notice almost Every post about afib includes "I have GERD" or indigestion or stomach issues?
I know this isnt a big epifany. The stomach would relate to problems of mal-absorbtion, etc.

How many of us started with GERD (or stomach problems) before Afib....Can I see a show of hands ?

It certainly wasn't a feature of afib for most of my 10 year afib career. During the approximately one year timeframe when my calcium intake was too high, I was sensitive to many more vagal things: ice cold drinks, spicy food, the vagal aftermath of orgasm, being prone on my left side & etc. When I got the electrolytes right for me, the sensitivity went away, too. I also have never had GERD.

It was for me. The hiatal hernia came before the AF. That said, even when I got the GERD under control, I still had/have episodes. It's a big factor, as my episodes are nearly always post-prandial!

Actually, I developed GERD after AFIB. Never had it before my ablation. I think that when they did my RF pulmonary vein isolation, they may have burned a little too close to my esophagus. They gave me nexium a week before and 3 weeks after the ablation, but it didn't help. It took a year for the GERD to finally go away. I'm sure the pradaxa didn't help my stomach either.

Jim

tsco - I didn't have GERD but I was seeing a chiropractor who said I had impingement on the diaphragm by the stomach that was causing vagus nerve irritation and thus the Afib. It wasn't a hiatal hernia according to him. He performed a series of adjustments or manipulations to eliminate that impingement and I went from long afib bouts 24 - 27 hours almost daily to zero events in about two weeks by having a couple of adjustments each week as I recall. Of course, that was at the time when I was trying everything I could think of. Acupuncture had no effect but this maneuver and optimizing my magnesium intake to much higher dosing along with increasing added potassium seemed to be extremely effective for me.

I have always used digestive enzymes with protein meals and that seems to help eliminate GERD or gastric irritation caused by not having enough natural stomach acid and the proper enzymes such as lipase, pancreatin, protease, amylase, lactase and so on to break down food so it doesn't lie in the stomach and ferment which causes gas and bloating etc.... so GERD issues were never a problem for me but they definitely are for many people. Often people are sensitive to lactose or gluten/gliaden proteins or other foods that need to be avoided in order to reverse gut issues that include GERD and similar symptoms.

Digestive enzymes and also the DGL product by Natural Factors have helped many people reverse their GERD tendencies.

The report in the Afib Resources section on

THE GUT CONNECTION TO AFIB
A Review of Digestion, GERD, Food Sensitivities, and Gut/Adrenal issues…
many Influences for AF… goes into more detail.

[www.afibbers.org]

Jackie

My first success managing my AF came with the recognition that my attacks, which invariably happened after dining at the home of friends who are very good cooks...therefore, I ate at least a bit too much... were linked with my stomach. The next longest run came with eliminating gluten from my diet. I suspect the stomach connection is linked with being vagal.

You may be interested in the following article:

Cardiac manifestations and sequelae of
gastrointestinal disorders: July 2009 Volume 16 Issue 4 Br J Cariol pages
175 -80. I"m sorry I don't know how to do actual links myself, but If you Google it you will turn up a link.

I've become convinced that the stomach is the source of a great deal of illness...some say all. But gut flora issues certainly can, in my opinion, influence AF. I'm pretty sure I've seen that myself.

Judianne,

Here is the link: <[bjcardio.co.uk]#

The simple way is insert a link is to type a < and then paste the link directly after it.

George

I have found Swanson's capsules containing 1/2 ginger and 1/2 turmeric to be very helpful in settling my stomach when it needs it.

______________
Lone paroxysmal vagal atrial fibrillation. Age 62, female, no risk factors. Autonomic instability since severe Paxil withdrawal in 2004, including extreme sensitivity to neuro-active drugs, supplements, foods. Monthly tachycardia started 1/11, happened only at night, during sleep, or when waking, bouts of 5-15 hours. Changed to afib about a year ago, same pattern. Frequency increased over last 6 months, apparently with sensitivity to more triggers. Ablation 6/27/13 by Steven Hao.

After several years and multiple doctors I finally arrived at my present doc and said "this thing is related to stomach upset issues, but no one believes me". She replied "I do", and went on to help me manage my gut issues and afib through testing, change of lifestyle and finally an ablation.
Ron

Ron
I had a very similar experience with my EP. At the beginning (15 yrs ago) I would tell him "it has to be related to my gut", he would kinda blow it off like I was crazy. Through the years that notion has transformed into responses from him like "Oh yes GERD and indigestion, bloating etc. can trigger and cause you problems". He even prescribed Prilosec one time.
So I think thru the years it has become obvious there is some tie.

There were no stomach issues in AF for me - none that were discernible anyway - unless you count the effect of MSG and that was more of specific dietary trigger..

Not too long after I was diagnosed with AF (over four years ago) I began to suspect a heart-stomach link and, in fact, had turned up a bit of research on the subject. I informally asked a gastro-interologist I know whether she thought there could be any connection. She completely dismissed the idea. Absolutely not! She suggested I take up yoga (which since I'm vagal, probably isn't a good idea).

Anyway, I share this story because it reminded me of how little experts in one area (the stomach, etc.) often know about other parts of the body and how they interact with each other. I am constantly amazed and puzzled by this but it does confirm that we all need to be our own advocates and be very careful about not taking the words of "experts" as gospel. We are human beings...complex interactions of mind-body etc....not just a collection of body parts. And while specialists likely know a huge amount about their particular area, they aren't likely, at least in my experience, to understand it as just one part of a larger whole.

And thanks George for the Tip on linking.

Judianne