Hi. I'm new to this site. I've had Sjogren's for many years but only recently have I been experiencing some additional symptoms besides the dry eyes and mouth. Among other things, for the last several months, I've been experiencing a fluttering in my chest usually after I eat. My PCP did an EKG a few days ago. He said it indicated an enlarged heart and, without explaining precisely what he saw, he gave me a contact number to a cardiologist. Obviously this has me a bit scared. I'm only 42. Can anyone here relate? Could this be related to Sjogren's?
Hi Merlin29! It's good that you were given a contact number for a cardiologist. I actually rely on my PCP to go over all health concerns with me, as I tend to focus in on the autoimmune stuff and not keep on top of other regular monitoring. Best case scenario, you get a clean bill of health when you go to the cardiologist. Worst case scenario? Whatever is going on is caught reasonably early and you can get on top of it.
If you do a search for Sjogren's and heart disease, you will find that there is a connection, primarily due to inflammation. It's okay to be scared, as long as you use it to act, and get yourself an appointment to be seen. I'm sorry that you're going through this. I'm close to your age, so I totally get it.
Hey... I'm 46 and started having heart issues before I was diagnosed with SS. One is related, one is not. I have Afib that no one seems to think is related. Also get boughts of costochondritis which is related. That's pretty annoying. Ironically, the med I take for the Afib is known to ease the symptoms of Raynauds. Our bodies are very weird and totally interconnected. I know it can be scary getting a grip on this stuff, especially when it seems so out of control but hang in there. I hate to say you get used to it, but to a point you do. I agree with Stoney though....whatever is up you're addressing it early and that definitely helps.