OnlineMedinfo

Palpitations

The endocrine causes of palpitations include an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism), overdosing of thyroid hormone, hypoglycemia (low blood glucose) and pheochromocytoma.

Anxiety, panic attacks, mitral valve prolapse, extra beats of the heart, heart attack and irregular heart beat are some of the non-endocrine causes of palpitations.

An overactive thyroid and overdosing of thyroid hormone are quite common and can be easily diagnosed with a blood test.

Hypoglycemia (low blood glucose) usually occurs in a diabetic patient due to too much insulin or other drugs such as Diabeta (glyburide), Micronase (glyburide), Glynase (glyburide), Glucotrol (glipizide), Diabenes (chlorpropamide), etc.

Hypoglycemia can rarely occur in a non-diabetic person and needs a thorough evaluation.

Pheochromocytoma is an uncommon endocrine disorder. In pheochromocytoma, there is an overproduction of adrenaline and noradrenaline from the adrenal glands. It usually manifests as episodes of palpitations, severe headache, profuse sweating and elevated blood pressure.

Pheochromocytoma can present in many other ways also. Consult an endocrinologist if you have any suspicion of pheochromocytoma.