HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

Bradycardia: Lyme or Flu? (not for me)

Support Forums
>
Lyme Disease
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 2/17/2018 10:30 PM (GMT 0)
Someone I'm close to had a very *mild* case of the flu a couple of weeks ago - really seemed more like a cold - but since then, has really *low* body temp (like 96.2-ish) and really *low* heartrate (51-52) and is not an elite athlete.

I know this can happen, even months after the fact, after contracting Lyme, and indicate heart block, but would low body temp be a part of that? Since was so sudden and after this mild case of flu, I looked it up and saw that this also happens w/ some severe flu years, like in the 2009 flu. So it's similar to Lyme in that heart block w/ bardycardia can be a complication, and also as with Lyme, could cause some of those so-called "heart attacks" that were likely sudden death from heart block caused by flu.

Needless to say, I'm worried, but this person has a med appt Monday.

Any thoughts on whether low body temp might also indicate this ? Or what else to look for and what testing to get to make sure heart block is fully considered? (and Lyme too, obvs, along with flu testing).

I know low thyroid could be an option too, but it seems unlikely it would come on this suddenly (right?) and this person previously tested for normal thyroid function.
Posted 2/18/2018 2:27 AM (GMT 0)
This is like, the 3rd time this week someone has posted my situation almost word-for-word. Crazy.

I've had a bad cold 3 or 4 times this past winter. It goes away then comes back again in a few weeks. I took Grapefruit Seed Extract (GSE) trying to get rid of Candida, and in a week started having a low HR (54) at night when I lay down on the couch to watch tv. It caused frigid chills and my temp was 95.3 - 96. It was of course accompanied by severe anxiety and insomnia.

I assumed it was a Babesia herx from the GSE, but it lasted well over a week after I stopped taking it. (panic, heart palps and air hunger -typical Babs- also preceded the bradycardia)

Finally got to see my doc who didn't seem too concerned about it, but said I could go to a GP for an EKG if it would make me feel better (But I would really need a HR monitor because it only happens sometimes, and in the evening). To him, it's typical for the 3 Bs (we think Babs is my biggest problem). I ended up taking Benzos to stop the anxiety attacks. The super low HR has subsided (knock on wood).

He also mentioned my thyroid, which I am treating for hypo. I am happy with my levels (~2.5 down from 4.8) but he likes to see it even lower. (my previous LLMD was not at all concerned with my 4.8). He recommended trying to raise my dose of thyroid med if other things didn't help.

So I'm treating Babs (probably the biggest cause), emergency measures for the anxiety attacks, trying to stay hydrated because liquids seem to go right through and not get into my bowels. Adding a little salt to my water helps it absorb.

I don't think it has anything to do with my colds/flu, but it's a heck of a year for it, so who knows?

I'm not sure if it would make me feel better to get heart tested by a GP. I don't really have a GP I trust (I get super emotional when they look at me funny about my Lyme) and its very stressful to find one. It will also cost a lot of money and, I feel, be going in the opposite direction as most Lymies, who spend a lot of $ and go through dozens of doctors for a diagnosis. I got my Lyme diagnosis, I am not sure I want to spend money just to prove to myself (and everyone else who can't believe Lyme takes this long to heal) that its not something else, when the heart issues exactly match tick-born illnesses and is very common, but not serious.
Posted 2/18/2018 3:15 AM (GMT 0)
BabsBunny, for what it's worth, this is the listing I found of a lot of research articles on cardiac complications of flu, including a lot with bradycardia. When I typed low body temp and bradycardia into a symptom checker, both Lyme and flu came up! (not babs, but you know, it's implied).

https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum/welcome-to-the-scientific-library/characteristics-of-pandemic-influenza/121231-myocarditis-and-influenza-a-h1n1-a-review-of-the-literature

So weird a lot of people are presenting suddenly with the same symptoms. It does seem like if that's the case, it's worth considering that it relates to flu season too, though it could of course be all of the above, like so many things here.
Posted 2/18/2018 3:34 AM (GMT 0)
yeah... this disease is a *****. You never know what's what.
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply