Raced Heart Beat. Taken Epidural Injection, Percoset And Motrin. Have Anxiety. Is It Due To Medication Taken With Caffeine?

Posted on Sat, 22 Sep 2012

Question: I just got my second epidural injection in my lower back this morning. This evening I went to 7-11 to get a cappuccino to stay awake then came home and took a 10mg. Percocet and an 800 mg. Motrin. I was ok for a little while then my heart started to race a bit and long story short the percocet doesn't usually do that is it because of the cappuccino? I already suffer from anxiety so i am probably making it worse then it is and it is continuing now because I keep thinking it is worse then it is. So i need to now make sure that I didn't do anything wrong?

Answered by Dr. Geeta Sundar (5 hours later)

Hello.

Thanks for posting your query.

I think all the medication plus the cappuccino led to gastric irritation and a lot of gas which must have been the cause for your pulse racing.

If you had taken only the medicines, or only the cappuccino, it would probably have not happened. Additionally, caffeine causes the heart to race.

In future, avoid taking caffeine containg drinks with pain medicines.

Right now, you can take Tab. Omeprazole on empty stomach to get relief. Drink plenty of water.

Consult your doctor if you do not find relief with these measures.

I hope, this answers you query. Please accept my answer in case you have no follow up queries.

Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Jyoti Patil

Follow up: Dr. Geeta Sundar (6 hours later)

I am aware that caffeine makes the heart race but but in the mornings when i wake up with my horrific leg and back pain I generally first make a cup of regular coffee, then I take a 10mg. Percocet and an 800mg. Motrin for my pain and i usually fine. I am wondering if this happened last night to me because of the cappuccino with high caffeine count? Were there still any recurrences from the epidural from yesterday morning left in my system? And keep in mind again that I do do have anxiety and i do tend to allow myself to get panic attacks, so once I feel something out of the ordinary like heart racing, I think about it too much and i probably made it worse. I just want to make sure again that i did nothing wrong so that I don't do it again

Answered by Dr. Geeta Sundar (23 minutes later)

Dear XXXXXXX,

I think it was the high caffeine content in your cappuccino that brought about the attack. Additionally many times cappuccino contains theophylline (which may not be present in your normal coffee) that can also cause a racing pulse. The ingredients in Percocet and Topiramate may not be responsible since you are taking them for sometime. Motrin can cause a racing pulse due to gastric irritation leading to gas formation and pressure on the heart by the stomach. The epidural does not normally cause a racing pulse unless you are allergic to the contents.

It makes sense to watch the caffeine intake when you suffer from anxiety problems. Caffeine has potential to interact with various ingredients in the list of medications that you take.

Hope this answers your query. Please accept my answer if you do not have any query left.

Wish you good health.

Note: For further guidance on mental health, Click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar