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What Causes Heart Palpitations In An Elderly Person?

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Posted on Mon, 3 Jul 2017
Question: I am a 52 year old woman and have been having heart palpations for a few days that last all day, energy level is not normal,could this be an anxiety issues?
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Answered by Dr. Ilir Sharka (1 hour later)
Brief Answer:
I would recommend performing some tests :

Detailed Answer:
Hello!

Thank you for asking on HCM!

Regarding your concern, I would explain that before concluding that your symptoms are caused by anxiety, it is necessary exclude other possible metabolic causes ( chronic anemia, thyroid dysfunction, electrolyte imbalance, kidney or liver disease, etc. ).

For this reason, I would recommend consulting with your attending physician for a careful physical examination and some tests :

- complete blood count
- fasting glucose levels
- thyroid hormone levels
- blood electrolytes
- kidney and liver function tests
- a resting ECG and cardiac ultrasound.

If all these tests result normal, you should consider anxiety as the main cause of your complaints.

I would also recommend you to closely monitor your blood pressure values. Low blood pressure can mimic this situation.

Hope to have been helpful!

Kind regards,

Dr. Iliri
Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad
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Answered by
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Dr. Ilir Sharka

Cardiologist

Practicing since :2001

Answered : 9539 Questions

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What Causes Heart Palpitations In An Elderly Person?

Brief Answer: I would recommend performing some tests : Detailed Answer: Hello! Thank you for asking on HCM! Regarding your concern, I would explain that before concluding that your symptoms are caused by anxiety, it is necessary exclude other possible metabolic causes ( chronic anemia, thyroid dysfunction, electrolyte imbalance, kidney or liver disease, etc. ). For this reason, I would recommend consulting with your attending physician for a careful physical examination and some tests : - complete blood count - fasting glucose levels - thyroid hormone levels - blood electrolytes - kidney and liver function tests - a resting ECG and cardiac ultrasound. If all these tests result normal, you should consider anxiety as the main cause of your complaints. I would also recommend you to closely monitor your blood pressure values. Low blood pressure can mimic this situation. Hope to have been helpful! Kind regards, Dr. Iliri