Is POTS a serious condition?

Is POTS a serious condition?

POTS is a serious condition that can significantly affect the quality of life, but it’s not usually life-threatening. There is no permanent cure or standardized treatment protocol available for POTS, but various treatment options are available to manage the disease conservatively.

What diseases cause POTS?

POTS Causes and Risk Factors

• Anemia (when you don’t have enough red blood cells)
• Autoimmune diseases, like Sjogren’s syndrome or lupus.
• Chronic fatigue syndrome.
• Diabetes and prediabetes.
• Ehlers-Danlos, a muscle and joint condition.
• Illnesses like mononucleosis, Lyme disease, or hepatitis C.
• Multiple sclerosis.

What does a POTS diagnosis mean?

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a condition that affects blood flow. POTS causes the development of symptoms — usually lightheadedness, fainting and an uncomfortable, rapid increase in heartbeat — that come on when standing up from a reclining position and relieved by sitting or lying back down.

Can POTS go away?

The good news is that, although POTS is a chronic condition, about 80 percent of teenagers grow out of it once they reach the end of their teenage years, when the body changes of puberty are finished. Most of the time, POTS symptoms fade away by age 20. Until recovery takes place, treatment can be helpful.

What is the life expectancy of someone with POTS?

Life expectancy is thought to be unaffected, but disability is considerable and equivalent to that found in congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Can anxiety cause POTS?

Is POTS Caused by Anxiety? While some of the physical symptoms of POTS overlap with the symptoms of anxiety, such as tachycardia and palpitations, POTS is not caused by anxiety.

Is POTS considered a disability?

Your POTS may be considered a disability if you meet the SSA’s definition of disability and meet a Blue Book listing. If your POTS does, then you may qualify for disability benefits. Other dysautonomia disorders include: Multiple system atrophy (MSA)

What can mimic POTS syndrome?

A pheochromocytoma can mimic POTS (or vice versa) because of the paroxysms of hyperadrenergic symptoms including palpitation, although pheochromocytoma patients are more likely to have these symptoms while supine than POTS patients.

What should you not eat with POTS?

Avoid large meals high in refined carbohydrate e.g. sugars, white flour. After eating, blood is diverted to the digestive tract and away from maintaining blood pressure and heart rate which may increase symptoms. Consider having a rest after eating and avoid strenuous activities.

Are POTS autoimmune?

New research from The University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences strongly suggests postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, or POTS, is an autoimmune disorder and may help pave the way for a simple blood test that could help physicians diagnose the condition.

Does POTS show up in blood work?

In POTS there is not usually a significant drop in blood pressure. Blood tests, heart monitoring and other tests are typically performed during the test. Tilt table testing is considered generally safe, and medical staff will monitor throughout the test.

Is pots a real illness?

“POTS is a real syndrome in which the patient’s heart rate accelerates abnormally when moving from lying down to standing up, and it causes a whole cascade of symptoms from fatigue to stomach upset that are often mistaken for depression.

What does pot mean in medical terms?

POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome): one of a group of conditions that are characterized by a greatly reduced volume of blood return to the heart after standing up from a lying down position. This causes the heart to beat faster ( tachycardia ) to try to maintain adequate levels of oxygen delivery to the tissues of the body.

What is the medical condition called Pots?

The medical term for the condition is POTS, short for postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. About 500,000 in the U.S., mostly young women, are affected. Among other symptoms, those with POTS have a rapid increase in their heartbeat when they change from lying down to standing.

How do you diagnose pots?

Receive a “tilt table test.”. Your doctor can diagnose you with POTS by simply measuring your heart rate sitting and standing; alternatively, he or she may perform what is called the ” tilt table test .”.