Pain in chest & shortness of breath

I had my PM implanted January 2019 and during the summer months of 2019 it was pure hell.  Starting in June 2019 until around September 2019 I was constantly having chest pains in my left pectoral near where I had the PM implanted.  I would often get short of breath especially during the night  around 2 am.  Eventually it ceased and I felt pretty normal or a while. Then when the weather started to get colder in November 2019 the pains came again along with a very bad case of GERD.  This lasted throughout the winter month and happened almost every night.  They are continuous now with the gas in my chest to where I am often short of breath at night time. Also now since the weather is getting hotter, if I drive any distance longer than 20 minutes my blood pressure rises quickly and I feel faint.  I mentioned this to my cardiologist and he gave me meds for my blood pressure  and to relieve the chest pain.  They have helped with the blood pressure but do not help witht he shortness of breath and gas in chest.  I tried antacids for the GERD which have helped but after a while my body becomes immune to them and the GERD reoccurs.  Any suggestions on how to handle this issue will be appreciated.

1 Comments

You need to see a gastroenterologist

by Gemita - 2020-06-12 03:15:24

Dear JLang3,

If you have had full investigations cardiac wise for your chest pain and these have been found to be largely benign I would ask for a referral to a gastroenterologist for an opinion.  There are many potential gastric causes for gas building up in the chest and these need to be investigated.

Abdominal bloating can affect the diaphragm which assists in breathing and this can lead to shortness of breath. This happens if the pressure in the abdomen is high enough to restrict diaphragm movement.  

Any condition that leads to the buildup of air or foodstuffs could cause both bloating and shortness of breath and sometimes arrhythmias because of the gastric/heart connection.  (Roemheld syndrome comes to my mind and I have posted a link below in case it might be of interest although I am in no way suggesting this is the diagnosis).  Also, intestinal movement disorders like irritable bowel syndrome and other conditions like celiac disease, lactose intolerance, constipation, bowel obstruction etc could cause bloating and shortness of breath so these need to be ruled out for your own peace of mind and comfort.

To help yourself in the meantime I would raise the head of your bed a few inches or sleep with extra pillows;  avoid eating gas forming foods like cabbage, sprouts, onions;  drink water (small sips throughout day) to help disperse gas;  don't eat too late at night or too much at any one time and try to eat slowly and chew food thoroughly before swallowing;  get regular exercise.  Try to avoid acidic, spicy foods and carbonated drinks.  Bending forward during day or sitting for too long bent over may worsen symptoms so try to stretch occasionally, move around and maintain good, upright posture might help.  Good luck

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roemheld_syndrome

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