What causes palpitations and increased heart rate?
Patient: Hello, I am 31 year old female, 5'4", and 154 lbs.  My blood pressure is always normal and heart rate is normal when I do see my doctor.  I have severe allergies and am on allergy shots every two weeks.  The only regular meds I take are zyrtec and yaz.  I work out two to four times a week.  I usually just do cardio workouts.  My heart rate usually stays within a good range and I recover well after my workout.  This weekend, I did some traveling and found that walking up stairs (several flights), my heart was pounding so hard I felt my chest would explode and it was much harder for me to recover.  I was breathing slow and deep, but do not feel that I was completely short of breath.  I was told I had low iron in the past, but to just take over the counter iron supplement and eat more foods with iron.  This horrible pounding and higher heart rate have me nervous.  I also occationally feel like my heart his pounding harder (not faster), when sitting.  Any suggestions on what is causing this pounding and increased heart rate when going up stairs? Doctor: Hello and welcome to HCM.I carefully read your question and I understand your concern.But dont worry.I'll try to explain you something and give you some advises.As you explain,my opinion as cardiologyst is that we are dealling whith a rhythm issue.You may feel increased heart rate and this pounding feeling for different reasons.It may be a simple tachycardia.It means that your heart beats over 100 for minute.Its normal range should be between 60-100 beat for minute. You may experience tachycardia for different reasons beginning from a simple emotional stres to different pathologys.You descript an iron deficiency long ago.Sometimes this iron deficiency may lead to anemia and this anemia can couse simple tachycardia.It is a compensatory mechanism of our body.You may experience palpitations becouse of extrasistoles.This are escapet beats originating from different parts of the heart.They may have a lot of couses.So,if I was your treating doctor I will recommend you to do some examinations like a simple blood analysis to look for possible anemia,your thyroid hormons to exclude a hyperthyroidism,electrocardiogram,echo cardiography and a holter monitoring to document your rhythm tendency.This for a simpme check up.At mean time avoid coffee and caffeine products becouse they rise your heart frequency.I hope I was helpful.Wish you good health.