Flomax and high blood pressure

[ockerdoc]

I got palpitations and sleep problems after taking Flomax for 4 days, I've still had problems sleeping and had a heavy heart so I went to my Doctor today and I have high blood pressure (140/95), I've never had this before and cannot imagine what has caused this if its not the Flomax. I read the side effects can be palpitations and irregular heartbeat but nothing about blood pressure. I'm going for blood tests and an ECG next Tuesday and its a bit worrying. Any advice or opinions on possible causes, even though slightly off topic of CPPS. Thanks

[webslave]

If anything, Flomax and other alpha blockers lower blood pressure.

Do you have high BP in the family? Have you gained a lot of weight recently? Was your BP taken right after climbing stairs or any exertion? Were you tense or nervous when it was taken ("white-coat hypertension")?

I would wait until I had a series of high measurements before getting worried. You may want to monitor your BP at home to get accurate, relaxed readings.

[neis]

Hi ockerdoc, I too went through a period of heart problem. The "heavy" heart feeling is an accurate description, and eventually it put me in the ER with atrial fibrillation and heart inflammation. It's good to get a stress test, and of course lower your blood pressure. The thing that's weird about our cases is they both started after a one night stand, in my case resulting in a urinary tract infection. No bug could be identified. That was a year and a half ago, and I've never been the same. I also developed short term memory loss and loss of balance to the point where the docs thought I had MS, an MRI which ruled it out. Never had anything like this before in my life. I now have chronic perineal pain, some perineal spasms, and occasional urinary restriction. Is the constant stress of chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome taking a toll systemically leading to heart and other complications? Is some unknown virus causing my heart inflammation and atrial fib.?(one month before UTI I test cycled at 185bpm sustained and 6.4 liter lung volume). It's all a mystery that's derailed life as I knew it. Keep us posted on your progress and what you learn.

[ockerdoc]

Thanks for the replies, there's no high blood pressure in the family and I have monitored my BP at home and it was normal this morning but then high again an hour ago, it seems to average at about 145/95. If it was only the blood pressure I wouldn't even know I had it, its the heavy heartbeat and mild chest pain that keeps me awake at night and I think this is causing the increase in blood pressure. I'm 35, go to the gym twice a week, am not overweight, so this is all very strange at the moment. Neis did they give any reasons to why your heart was inflamed? How do I lower BP, just diet and exercise is the main thing I believe, I don't smoke or drink alcohol or coffee that much. Anyway I'll let you know how the ECG goes.

Cheers

Dave

[neis]

Hi Dave, my C-reactive protein was well above normal range, and the heart stuff seemed to be escalating for months to the point of atrial. fib. My doctor seemed unconcerned because I passed the stress test. I was a marathoner for years and close to a 4 minute miler, of course I'm going to pass the stress test. I decided to take tetracycline on my own, and within 4 days my symptoms improved, and after 20 days of tetra I felt well. Coincidence after months of this, not likely. Haven't had my C-reactive protein re-tested, but a year before it tested normal, so there's some correlation. My heart has felt fine since the tetra about 3 months ago. I hope you improve soon. Heart stuff gets scary.

[ockerdoc]

Thanks neis, its funny I've done exactly the same, I had 2 weeks of doxycycline and 1 month of nitrofurantoin in my cupboard which I've began taking because the chance of culturing an organism in very slim so I'm going to give it the double hit just in case. Hopefully I might see some difference. Your right, prostate problems are not life threatening, heart problems are a totally different ball game.

[webslave]

Just in case some readers think that elevated C-Reactive protein (CRP) is linked to CPPS, I've had mine tested and it was normal. Doxycycline is one of the most anti-inflammatory antibiotics and can lower CRP scores

At six-month follow-up, sub-antimicrobial dose doxycyline significantly reduced CRP levels by 45.8 percent compared to baseline values