Metoprolol Tartrate vs Succinate

Metoprolol Tartrate or Succinate

by Gemita - 2022-10-27 20:14:12

Jer, hello, I haven’t taken Metoprolol but I see succinate is an extended release med whereas tartrate is immediate release.  The latter (Tartrate) will obviously hit the blood stream faster but will disperse more quickly unless it is topped up (taken in further doses throughout the day).  

To keep a regular sustained dose of Tartrate in your body would require discipline on your part and adherence to a regular time schedule when you take two or more doses during the day.  Instead Succinate being extended release may only need to be taken once a day for example, will be slower to hit the blood stream but once it has reached the blood stream, it will be an evenly spread dose of the med over 24 hours so you will not get the sudden surges or falls that you might experience with Tartrate, especially if you were to miss a dose.

With an arrhythmia, we can be very sensitive to either too much or too little of the med in our bloodstream at any one time.  For this reason I would recommend the Succinate too. 

It sounds as though your EP might be suggesting you use Tartrate as a pill in the pocket (on an as needed basis) in case you need an additional booster dose to calm any future SVT episodes when you are particularly symptomatic, but hopefully this won't be necessary with extended release Succinate.  

I hope you are doing okay Jer?

I've had both

by AgentX86 - 2022-10-27 22:05:54

The succinate version is the generic name for Lopressor XL or EXtended release. It's just the slow release version of  tartrate. They do the same thing.

I take the succinate twice a day, which is unusual.  I'm really not sure why but I do what my cardiologist says (or I'd find another).

Jer

by Gemita - 2022-10-30 05:58:42

By the way, nice to see your pic in the gallery.  Thank you for taking the time to do this.

Hope your SVT episodes have calmed.  Only time will tell what med will work best for you and it will usually come down to a lot of trial and error and we mustn't be afraid to experiment, with doctor's blessing of course.  I am still doing this to see what helps and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Over time our heart condition and lives can change, so we need to adjust our meds too sometimes Jer.

An arrhythmia can be difficult to assess.  A lot of it is watching, waiting and learning how our arrhythmias behave or start.  Sometimes there are no obvious triggers.  At other times we have clear triggers.  

Getting tachycardia mainly at night could point to problems during sleep, like worsening heart failure/heart disease, breathing problems associated with lung disease or even sleep disordered breathing associated with sleep apnea, which I see you have. 

Getting tachycardia during the day when exercising for example is quite common among athletes, since exertion may trigger a fast arrhythmia like SVT or short episodes of non sustained VT.

Personally I find that beta blockers are not always helpful since they go on working even when we have no need for them with "intermittent arrhythmias".  A beta blocker usually needs to be taken indefinitely too once a fast arrhythmia has been detected especially if we are symptomatic during episodes.  Ideally I would like to be able to manage with a pill in the pocket only type medication on an as needed basis, although this method of control would not be as effective as taking a daily beta blocker to help prevent a fast arrhythmia starting.  Also a pill in the pocket med would take time to work at a time when you might need immediate help to control your heart rate.  A further discussion with your cardiologist/EP on the best med for you might be a good idea, although I believe Metoprolol is a well tested and safe cardio selective med to take long term Jer