additional drugs -can someone tell me why

Misunderstanding

by donr - 2017-08-13 18:20:05

We don't know what the downloading nurses saw, so cannot comment - BUT:

1)  Beta blockers are NOT anti-coagulants.  They are more closely characterized as "anit-anxiety" meds for the heart.  They calm it down & tend to slow it down.  They also affect BP by reducing it. 

F'rinstance, I have a lot of PVC's.  I take a Beta blocker in conjunction w/ an anti-arrhythmic med to calm my heart down & stop the premature ventricular contractions.

The Warfarin (you called it Wolferin) is the anti-coagulant.  It has nothing to do with viscosity ("thiness") of the blood.  The blood flows just as fast & easily in your veins with or without the warfarin.  What it does affect is the rapidity with which it CLOTS (Coagulates) on contact with air, or if it meets some foreign object or obstacle in the vascular system.  Atrial Fibrillation can cause a clot to form.  That clot can travel into a lung & cause a pulmonary embolism (A clot that gets trapped in the very small capillaries in the lungs) or a stroke (A clot trapped & clogging a small capillary in the brain).   

Hence the Warfarin - to prevent clotting & potential strokes/embolisms.

The Beta Blocker is to calm things down & help prevent Some arrhythmia that could be causing small clots to form in the heart.

Donr

thank you

by bridgermichael - 2017-08-13 18:45:00

thank you - sorry yes spelling error- that helps to explain why they want me to take them  although I have low beat arrhythmia which was what I had the pm for so if I need calming is that not going to bring it to the low setting ? 

mike 

Additional drugs

by TAC - 2017-08-14 07:34:27

I concur with "dons" comment. I just want to expand it by adding the following:  You probably had the PM implanted because of bradycardia (slow pulse) brought by atrial fibrillation. The PM will protect you from the slow pulse by not allowing your heart beats to go too slow, but it cannot prevent you from having more episodes of AF. It seems that you have had long episodes of AF, which increase your chances of developing blood clots inside the heart, that can give you a stroke. Beta blockers and anticoagulant medications, is a common combination of medications used for treating atrial fibrillation. Atrial fibrillation is dangerous and more so, when you don't feel it. Don't worry that you will never going to have a slow pulse anymore because you have a PM, and you will now be better protected.

thank you

by bridgermichael - 2017-08-14 18:20:01

thank you - I have been a great advocate of my pm and had good experience it's just the additional meds now some 18 months later that was a worry but you both have explained it very well and I now understand that it's to prevent potential nasties from occurring !