heavy exercise causes need for pacemaker

my 52 year old son is a long distance bicycler and has his heart rate in 40ies, sometimes lower and I do not think this is a good thing in many cases. I keep reading about athletes even much younger that suddenly need a pacemaker. Am I the only one who sees a correlation?? He has skipped beats and some racing heart episodes. Cardiologist will do more tests next week but doesn't tell him to cut back on the exercise. I have SSS and got a pacemaker suddenly three years ago. I am not athletic. i just noticed the incidents of strenuous exercise - oops the person needs a pacemaker on this web site. I got such wonderful feedback from you people during the early months after I got my PM when I was scared to death. Please advise about my son who won't listen to his mother.

13 Comments

Hi

by Moner - 2013-10-18 07:10:07

Hi Boochance,

I would swear my own mother put you up to this question, she lives in Florida too!

When she was living up north, she was always after me about this.

There seems to be a lot of studies from reputable journals supporting this theory, so much so it would make your head spin. I know being a mother, we all worry about our children, it's hard to be a spectator.

It's good he's going to the cardiologist, I hope that gives you some relief.

Take care,

Moner
>^..^<

don't think there is a connection

by Tracey_E - 2013-10-18 07:10:27

There is some small evidence that extremely competitive athletes after many years of extreme endurance may have a higher rate of heart issues but for the average person who stays in shape and is active? I really don't think so. Many young people are active, I don't think the incidence of needing a pm is any higher among athletes than couch potatoes, the couch potatoes just don't make the news. Electrical problems often just happen at random, like a short circuit, they are unrelated to how strong the heart is so nothing we did caused it, nothing we could have done differently would have prevented it.

Could your SSS be genetic?

Many athletes have very efficient bodies and therefore a low resting rate. A healthy low resting rate is not the same as SSS. With a healthy sinus node, it reads the oxygen level in the blood and raises the hr as needed. The rate is staying low because the oxygen levels are sufficient. With SSS, it gets lazy and slacks off, so the heart doesn't go up on exertion and/or dips on occasion. Where to draw the line between healthy athlete's heart and problematic in need of a pm is often subjective. A Holter will show if he's dipping at night when he sleeps. A stress test will show if his rate goes up adequately when he exercise. If it's in the 50's and he feels good, he does not need a pm. 40's is more questionable. It's good to get it checked out but if he feels good exercising, at this point there's no reason to cut back. If he has symptoms then my answer is different, feel free to get on his case to cut back until he gets some answers ;o)

What excellent comments

by boochance - 2013-10-18 09:10:49

You folks are the best. Such helpful comments. I will send them on to Marc, the naughty son, so he can show the doctor. My SSS probably is genetic. I had two grandparents on different sides of my family drop dead from sudden heart attack at same age, 63, one woman, one a man. My father died at 63 too but his was an accident. No autopsy that I know of.

Cardio athletes and afib

by ebfox - 2013-10-19 06:10:29

I rarely disagree with Tracey but I do on this one. There is a growing body of evidence pointing towards years of cardio exercise resulting in a higher incidence of arrhythmia. One very interesting study following Norwegian participants of the Brikenbiener cross-country ski race in the mid- 1970's. Thirty five years later, approximately 18% of these people have afib, versus 2-3% of the general population in that age group. I was a lifetime runner who became an afibber at age 53; when my surgeon performed my mini-maze surgery, he noted extensive fibrotic tissue in my heart. Talking to him afterwards, he said that regarding chronic cardio exercise, it does two things that can be bad: 1)makes the heart fibrotic (fibrotic tissue doesn't conduct electricity like like normal tissue, therefore you end of with afib, tachy-brady, SSS, etc.); 2) t screws up your heart's autonomic control system, which also contributes to various sorts of arrhythmia.

So lots of running or biking will keep your arteries clear, however it may cause you to end up with a PM. I have no doubt that it is was the main cause of my afib.

E. B.

electrical vs plumbing problems

by Tracey_E - 2013-10-19 08:10:45

Electrical problems are a short circuit. They cause slow hr, not heart attacks. Heart attacks happen when part of the heart muscle dies because blood is not flowing, usually because the plumbing got backed up (clogged arteries). Heart attacks are a combination of genetics and lifestyle and unrelated to electrical problems. Having electrical problems does not raise our chance of having a heart attack.

With your grandparents, it's hard to say. They did not have the level of monitoring we do now, statins weren't as common, so who knows what might have happened had they had the medical care we can get today. If I'd been born the same year as my mom, I would not have made it to my 30th birthday. Thanks to modern technology, I'm 47 and not planning to slow down any time soon. I guess I'm saying respect what is in your family history but don't let it freak you out, either.

Whatever our family history, we should all be having regular checkups, watch cholesterol and triglycerides, eat a good diet, exercise daily. While genetic heart problems can make life interesting, when it comes down to it many of the people in the waiting room at the cardiologist's office have things that may have been preventable with better lifestyle choices. Your son's love of his bike is one of the best things he can be doing for himself. A strong heart is the best way to fight whatever genetic hand we've been dealt.

Again, thanks for thoughtful input

by boochance - 2013-10-19 08:10:52

E. B. I agree with your comments. Especially if the athletic person has signs of heart issues in their 20ies they can't blow it off like it's nothing. If a person insists on continuing strenuous exercise, and I know that is very satisfying to many, please stay in close contact with your heart doc and have a Holter monitor done periodically to see what happens to your HR especially when you are sleeping. I think I mistakenly said heart attack earlier. I guess it would be cardiac arrest when a rhythm problem causes the heart to stop. My h. doctor said I would probably have died in my sleep when my HR went so low.
It has been such a relief not to have the racing heart spells that lasted for hours and then the low rate when I would feel so weak. Took six years to get it figured out.

Evidence is on here

by IAN MC - 2013-10-20 07:10:23

Like E.B. I disagree with Tracey ( which is unusual )

As well as the published studies it is evident from the posts on here that a disproportionately high number of distance runners and triathletes end up with arrhythmias
and pacemakers. Having been associated with running clubs for the past 35 years I had arrived at this conclusion
before I ,too, had to join this club.

Ian



P.S.

by SteveE - 2013-10-20 08:10:11

I still am an occasional social drinker and the alcohol is no more a problem now than before all the heart procedures. Caffeine is the one I have reduced - but I did that years before the heart surgery of pacer. I occasionally drink regular tea or half-caf coffee and have no problems from either.

I probably break the model. . .

by SteveE - 2013-10-20 08:10:25

But I was a recreational runner for over 30 years, even with aortic stenosis. I ended up with not only a single bypass (surprise!), but the expected replacement valve and a pacemaker. They attributed my pacing woes to the fact that the nerve bundle that controls heart rhythm runs very close to the valve tissue that had to be removed to do the replacement, and that 5 to 10% of aortic valve patients end up with pacemakers.

But prior to surgery, I also had tachy/bradycardia and a low resting heart rate (mid to upper 40's). Who knows? I just know that after all the repairs, life is good. I tell people that the only time I really realize I have the pacemaker is when I look in a mirror with my shirt off. I can't run any more (knees just won't take it any more), but I do everything else that I did before - and then some.

Tell your son that the pacemaker is not a life-ending decision. . . it is a life extending choice.

And Another Thing

by boochance - 2013-10-20 08:10:56

I believe the evidence shows the connection between heavy exercise and ending up with a PM but each person has to decide for themselves if it's worth the risk. My son read all your comments and he is digesting them. I am glad the PM saved my life but it's no piece of cake living with it. The other thing is - my heart doctor said while a glass or two of wine may be good for people with clogged arteries, alcohol in any amount is not recommended for people with afib or any rhythm problem with or without a PM. I had read that recently too. No one wants to hear that but I fear it's true. Did any you get told that by your doctors? i never drank much anyway but I refrained for the over three years since I got PM but a couple of weeks ago I decided what the heck and had about six ounces of wine and it made me feel a flip flop in my chest and a brief shooting pain in the head. i decided it wasn't worth it.

So Helpful

by boochance - 2013-10-20 09:10:40

Obviously you have an excellent attitude. I need to work on mine. You had several heart issues and took it in stride. I only have SSS and no other health problems so I need to get a grip and not dwell on it. If my son does end up needing a pacemaker and it looks to me that is where it's headed, he will do well because he is tough and optimistic. He won't resign from his wine club either.
To each his own. Thanks.

don't be afraid of a PM

by pel - 2013-10-22 10:10:43

For most of my life I had an erratic EKG which eventually led to regular heart testing. I didn't believe my heart ever stopped me from doing anything I wanted athletically. My testing showed I had a thick heart wall, with a slight arrhythmia, but it did not overly alarm me or my doctors. This last January I had a stage 2 block, had a PM implanted, and have found a totally new life. I am pacing 98% now, am monitored weekly by a wireless monitor next to my bed, and am exercising harder than ever because I finally know what it's like to get my lungs full of air all the time. I will soon be 63, and just finished rowing my 7th Head of the Charles Regatta on Sunday and had my best race ever.
I guess my message is that having a PM shouldn't necessarily be something to fear if you've kept yourself otherwise fit and have a healthy lifestyle.

Son's tests

by boochance - 2013-10-26 09:10:54

His echogram that showed nothing bad. NOW he tells me his EKGs showed RBBB like I always have had and he was told that is nothing (I was told that also when it was discovered in my late fifties when I had my fist EKG).
Of course he aced the treadmill test as did I. And his heart doctor belongs to the bike club with my son. Still no holter monitor like I keep suggesting. He continues to have braca and skipping beats etc. They so far occur when isn't exercising. Time will tell.

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