Is Your Medication Causing Atrial Fibrillation?
Atrial fibrillation is not a disease in itself, but is a symptom of some other disorder in the body. Atrial fibrillation is characterized by an irregular, rapid heart beat that can be either intermittent or permanent in nature. Triggers for atrial fibrillation can include angina, valvular heart disease, heart attack, heart surgery, hyperthyroidism, anemia, hypoglycemia, hypertension, atherosclerosis, electrolyte imbalances such as between sodium and potassium or calcium and magnesium , binge drinking, strenuous exercise, consumption of foods containing tyramine (such as cheese, red wine, yogurt, bananas and chocolate), caffeine, nicotine, bacterial infections such as Heliobacter-pylori and pharmaceutical drugs.
Pharmaceutical drugs that can trigger atrial fibrillation include Bisphosphonates such as Fosamax made by Merck Inc and Reclast by Novartis AG. Women who have ever used alendronate, otherwise known as Fosamax, have an 86% higher risk of atrial fibrillation. Steroid use can also trigger atrial fibrillation. In the May 2006 Archives of Internal Medicine, Dr Stricker reports that in the Rotterdam Study the risk of new onset atrial fibrillation was significantly higher in individuals who received corticosteroids. High doses of coricosteroids may affect the balance of potassium in cardiac muscle cells, which may induce arrhythmia or can cause sodium and fluid retention, leading to hypertension, left atrial enlargement and congestive heart failure….all known risk factors.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs including ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin etc) and naproxen (Aleve) are over the counter medications taken by tens of millions of Americans every day. These drugs can cause serious heart rhythm abnormalities that can lead to stroke or sudden death!
Then there are the prescription strength NSAID’s prescribed by physicians every day. These include: celecoxib (celebrex) diclofenac (Cataflam, Voltaren) etodolac (Lodine) ibuprofen (Motrin) indomethacin (Indocin) ketorolac (Torad0l) (Anaprox, Naprosyn) meloxican (Mobic) oxaprozin (Daypro) piroxicam (Feldene) sulindac (Clinoril), Citalopram (Celexa).
There are many other drugs that can cause atrial fibrillation or flutter, I am listing some of them but the list is not complete. If you click on the highlighted terms, you will find a sample of studies related to the drug and atrial fibrillation and other side effects. I have not provided links for all of the drugs as many of them are listed in the same studies.
If you develop atrial fib after starting a new prescription, you need to do an online search for that medication and heart rhythm abnormalities to find out if there is a link. I suggest you then talk to your natural health provider armed with this information and discuss other options to address your atrial fibrillation. Remember, your health is in your hands!
