Atrial fibrillation – in short, AFib – is a condition wherein your heart beats rapidly and of an irregular rhythm. This irregular beating of your heart is called arrhythmia. If left unattended, AFib can cause clotting of blood inside your cardiac system; this in turn causes strokes, heart attack and a few other problems. You may observe adverse effects like shortened respiratory cycles, being lightheaded, etc. Metoprolol is a beta-blocker med. It is used for treating chest pain / angina as well as elevated blood pressure levels. But do caregivers prescribe metoprolol for AFib? It is a good thing to know more.
During spells of atrial fibrillation, chambers on top-part of your heart beat in an irregular manner. These top chambers are called atria. While this occurs, lower chambers of your heart – known as ventricles – may remain out of sync with the atrial beats. These out-of-beat spells may occur time and again or may persistently show up. In general, AFib may not lead to a fatal outcome. But, treating it can help avoid serious conditions like stroke or heart attack.
Treatment of AFib often involves administration of medications, clinical techniques to block erratic cardiac signals as well as therapies to bring your heart beat to a proper rhythm. It is quite likely those with AFib may also live with another condition called Atrial Flutter; treatments offered to flutter is similar to those given for AFib.
In this light, what is metoprolol?
This drug belongs to a genre called beta blockers. Its key chemicals regulate blood flow through veins and arteries as well as regulate the functioning of your heart. Caregivers prescribe it for treating spells of angina and for hypertension. In its injectable form, metoprolol is administered during the onset of heart failure; this can help decrease the risks of death. In general, this beta-blocker avoids the need of being admitted into a hospital to treat cardiac failure or a heart attack.
Metoprolol
Beta blockers like metoprolol get attached to adrenergic-receptors of your system. Such receptors are helpful in making chemicals like norepinephrine, epinephrine, etc. On the whole, there are 3 distinctive categories namely beta-1, beta-2 and beta-3. Of these, beta-1 is in kidneys and heart and these boost rate of heartbeats. Beta-2 is associated with relaxation of arteries as well as veins. Lastly, beta-3 influence rate of metabolism of fatty acids and may also relax your urinary system.
Is metoprolol used for AFib?
Drugs like metoprolol block hormones like epinephrine, and this creates a few anti-adrenal effects. For instance, users of metoprolol tend to witness a slowdown of heart beats as well as reduction in their blood pressure levels. Of the various beta blockers widely available in drugstores, metoprolol is the most popular offering.
Metoprolol can treat a wide range of cardiac conditions like congestive cardiac failure, post-cardiac arrest recoveries, of course Atrial Fibrillation (AFib), chest pain or angina. Dosage of this med depends on your family’s clinical track record, your own health conditions – both present and past, severity of the underlying heart problem, etc.
Metoprolol dose for AFib
Dosage of metoprolol is 25 mg as a single dose at the start of your medication plan. Subsequent doses are increased based on how your system responds to the fist few doses. Your caregiver is unlikely to increase the dosage strength to more than 200 milligrams (mg) within a 24-hour timeline.
For severe chest pain or angina, the first few doses (of this drug’s extended-release variant) are at a higher level of 100 mg per day. In such cases, per-day dosage is never above 400 mg in a day.
If you have missed a dose, never take a double dose. Instead, skip the dose your forgot to take and move ahead with the upcoming dosage. Those who took two doses at the same time witnessed an overdosed condition along with signs of toxicity.
Disclaimer
Information provided here are only of supplementary nature. Information shared here does not substitute a qualified doctor’s advice. This website is not suggesting intake of this drug as safe or appropriate. Hence it is advised to talk to your doctor before consuming this med or any other drug.
Education: Master’s in Epidemiology from Harvard University. Experience: 10 years of writing experience, including articles on infectious diseases and public health for leading health publications and research blogs.
