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What Causes Rapid Weight Gain While On Atenolol?
Question: My doctor put me on 25mg of Athenol for a fast heartbeat that showed up on an EKG. I have gained 7lbs with severe dieting and increased dieting. Can I get off this cold turkey?
Brief Answer:
I would recommend as follows:
Detailed Answer:
Hello!
Welcome and thank you for asking on HCM!
Regarding your concern, I would explain that Atenolol does not cause weight gain as an adverse effect.
Nevertheless, it can cause chronic fatigue.
Coming to this point it is important investigating for other possible causes of weight gain like:
- fluid retention (related to heart failure, kidney and liver disorders)
- metabolic disorders (adrenal gland dysfunction, thyroid dysfunction), etc..
So, I would recommend performing some tests to investigate for the possible causes:
- a chest X ray study
- a resting ECG and cardiac ultrasound
- some blood lab tests (complete blood count, PCR, sedimentation rate, blood electrolytes, thyroid hormone levels, cortisol plasma levels, fasting glucose, kidney and liver function tests).
If all the above tests result normal, you should consult with a dietitian in order to help you loose weight.
Regarding atenolol, if you do not tolerate it, or you feel tired all the time, I would recommend to gradually reduce the dose to 12.5mg for some days and then stop, in order to avoid withdrawal symptoms like rebound tachycardia.
Hope to have been helpful!
Kind regards,
Dr. Iliri
I would recommend as follows:
Detailed Answer:
Hello!
Welcome and thank you for asking on HCM!
Regarding your concern, I would explain that Atenolol does not cause weight gain as an adverse effect.
Nevertheless, it can cause chronic fatigue.
Coming to this point it is important investigating for other possible causes of weight gain like:
- fluid retention (related to heart failure, kidney and liver disorders)
- metabolic disorders (adrenal gland dysfunction, thyroid dysfunction), etc..
So, I would recommend performing some tests to investigate for the possible causes:
- a chest X ray study
- a resting ECG and cardiac ultrasound
- some blood lab tests (complete blood count, PCR, sedimentation rate, blood electrolytes, thyroid hormone levels, cortisol plasma levels, fasting glucose, kidney and liver function tests).
If all the above tests result normal, you should consult with a dietitian in order to help you loose weight.
Regarding atenolol, if you do not tolerate it, or you feel tired all the time, I would recommend to gradually reduce the dose to 12.5mg for some days and then stop, in order to avoid withdrawal symptoms like rebound tachycardia.
Hope to have been helpful!
Kind regards,
Dr. Iliri
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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