Not heart related...............BUT

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Rich

Rich

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 11, 2002
Messages
1,314
Location
S.E. Mi
it is affecting my heart. About six weeks ago I woke up one morning feeling very bloated with a tremendous amount of gas. I still have it today, it goes on 24/7. I don't profess to understand my heart when it comes to digestive issues, but it is working very hard apparently to accomodate this problem, including irregular beats. My old St. Jude has never been this loud. Had a check-up with my cardiologist last week and all is well in spite of this problem.
About a week and a half after this all began I went to my gastro guy. He put me through the old colon check, did an abdominal x-ray and a CT scan of the abdomen and pelvic area. The results of these tests showed absolutely nothing wrong. In a few days I will have a upper GI. Also had a few blood tests looking for other things that might cause this.
It's not gall bladder, that little guy was taken out over thirty years ago.
I do have acid reflux but treating it with Nexium the last few years has worked well. Havn't gained or lost any weight, weight hasn't changed more than a pound or two in over thirty years. Even the major 'cleanout' before the colon check gave me no relief whatsoever. And yes I still have normal daily movements.
I'm very frustrated and feel lousy day and night.
Anyone ever have something like this?
Rich
 
Rich,

Can't say I've experienced anything like it...sorry.

And, thus (sadly), I don't have any advice or ideas on what it might be....

Just know ... thoughts/prayers are coming your way....



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"Sometimes a cold wind blows a chill in my bones" ... John Denver ... 'Some Days Are Diamonds'
 
Any medication changes, any changes to your diet-additives or foods, any food allergies? Were there changes that occurred on or about the time that this developed?

I'm glad your doctors are following up with thoroughness.

I hope they can find out what it is soon and give you some relief.
 
I've been on Nexium for two months now, with the same symptoms, and I've blamed the Nexium; I so look forward to getting off of it.
 
Have you used any antibiotics recently? Something very similar happened to me a few years ago. It was agony. It hurt so much, it would actually wake me up. And the gas - well, I set some personal records... :eek:

I went to the emergency room, as it hurt so much in one spot on the lower right that I thought it might even be appendicitis. They did some tests, couldn't figure it out, and just diagnosed it as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which was the popular catch-all in the medical industry at the time.

However, I after doing some reading, I realized a week or more later that it was related to milk products. Now, I have been a Dairy Fiend all my life: milk, ice cream. This was horrible. I tried lactase supplements for anytime I had dairy. Sadly, it worked great, so I knew my beloved cows were the author of my stomach pain. (Product is over-the-counter, called LactAid, and there may be store brand versions as well.)

I started taking probiotics (not the weak stuff in yogurt, but probiotic pills with eight or ten unpronounceable bacteria in them), and in just over a month, I could eat dairy again unassisted, and I've not had the problem again.

I recently had SpectraCEF and Levaquin, and took the probiotics right after I completed them, with no ill effects. Not much point to take probiotics with the pills, as the bacteria from them don't get a chance to flourish.

It's a thought.

Best wishes,
 
Thanks for the input everyone.
Nancy there were no changes of any kind to diet, medications,etc.

Bob the funny thing is I have no pain, just a lot of bloating and huge amounts of gas 24/7. I think my poor wife may run me out of the house.

Until we get a handle on this my doctor has me using a supplement called Align. I guess it's purpose is to add good bacteria that we might lose as we age. So far it hasn't helped.

Jim the Nexium has worked well until now. It did however have a huge impact on my INR when I started it a few years ago. I stopped and started the stuff several times and ended up on the old roller coaster.

Maybe tommorow's test will show something. Maybe I don't want to know. Kind of scary.

Rich
 
I can agree with the INR impact of Nexium as well; it acts like amiodarone; my coumadin dosage has been nearly halved being on Nexium.
 
Ross,
I don't think so. She wouldn't like the 'results' of that. Of course she is probably not too thrilled with me now.:rolleyes:

Jim,
My weekly dosage went from the low thirties down to just 22.5 weekly.
 
No interactions were found for the drugs you selected.
You searched for interactions between the following drugs:

Coumadin
Nexium
 
I don't know what might be causing your gas issues, but I did want to say that whenever I have bloating and gas I get irregular beats until the bloating and gas subside. I have a big history pre-MVR of arrhythmia, so I think my heart is sensitive to such things.

Most times if I take an antacid my digestion settles down and the irregular beats subside.
 
I may have gotten a clue from some posts.
Maybe it's the long term use of Nexium that could be the problem.
Just a guess right now but I did contact Astra-Zeneca. They will have this evaluated by one of their medical professionals, then contact me or my doctor with any findings.
The average person takes Nexium for about eight weeks, and the company studies only go to twelve months.
Doing a little digging I found this drug can cause things like gastroenteritis and atrophic gastritis if used long term, especially in older patients.
I will just wait and see, got a call in to my doctor's office right now.
Thank God for the internet!!
Rich
 
Rich, if its not your overuse of Nexium, and if you have not yet been tested for Celiac Disease, I'd recommend that you get tested for it to at least rule it out. Celiac Disease is an intolerance to gluten, and the symptoms can vary widely, and can include gas, bloating, etc. (and some folks that have it have no symptoms). Gluten is found in wheat and several other grains, and is found in lots of foods. The initial tests can be done by blood sample, but they are very specific antibody tests. There is a lot of information on Celiac Disease on the Internet. Good luck!
 
Rich,

Sorry you are having this problem. My wife has acid reflux and has taken Prevacid for years and it helps her a lot. Insurance tried to switch her to Nexium because of cost, and it didn't help at all. Prevacid is considerably more expensive, but you might want to ask your doctor about giving it a try, on the possibility your body has developed an aversion (or whatever the term would be) to Nexium. Just a thought. Hope everything gets better for you soon.
 
Rich...Have You Been Tested For Diabetes?

Rich...Have You Been Tested For Diabetes?

The reason I ask this is that one of the complications of Diabetes is what they call Gastioperesis, which involves food either moving through the system too fast or too slow...I have it and it causes me to bloat at times and I too suffer from the excessive flatulence. Just a thought you might ask to be tested for. Hope this might help. Harrybaby
 
Thanks again everyone.
Dan I did have the blood test for that condition last Friday, still don't have the report because my doctor is gone this week.

Bob I am looking into the Nexium as a possible problem, waiting for the people at Astra-Zeneca to review my call and report to me or my doctor, maybe both.

Today I had the upper GI and small bowel test. Oh what fun.:rolleyes:
When you have these tests where it is required to drink that nasty stuff, why can't they at least make it taste like beer?
Rich
 
Harry,
Yes I did a full blood test not long ago and I'm nowhere near any diabetes.
But thanks for the info, it is a real mystery so far.
 
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