PVC's

I have a PM/ICD with only one lead that is on the left ventricle. Recently I had to wear a heart monitor for 3 wks because I was feeling irregular heart beats. As it turns out I am having PVC's like crazy. I didnt think to ask this when I was in the docs office, but how come my PM didnt see those?
Cathy

5 Comments

PVC's

by ElectricFrank - 2012-09-15 01:09:52

The PM/ICD likely did see the PVC's and they just didn't mention them to you.

Without going into great detail, PVC's are generally nothing to be concerned about unless they are uncomfortable. At one point a few years ago I went through a spell of 2500-3000 PVC's/day. I must have had a virus or something because they are now down to very few. It is best to avoid meds or other treatments for them unless they are unbearable.

If you want to know more about them do a search here on the site. Several of us have gone into great detail about them over the years.

frank

PVCs

by Luq - 2012-09-15 02:09:17

i have a same problem; a thousands of pvcs but the pm could note them. my doc said may i was just having such a feeling when the pm tries to 'pace'.

i understand the feeling you have. The pvcs can run you mad and you will finally be branded with a panic disorder because you feel them and you find non of your dr is of any concern. i have several times ended up to ER with no help though sometimes they pound so hard and make me feel like i want to pass out.

like frank pointed out and after learning some people's stories in this forum, they dont bother me anymore. when they become severe and i feel like am about to panic (rarely though) i will take my sleeping pill and they disappear when i wake up.

just learn to ignore them.

luq

PVC's Continued

by TalkinCardio - 2012-09-15 03:09:57

Don, doc said they occur every 3rd beat. It may not seem "like crazy" to you but that's how it feels to me. :)

Now that I know what they are, I can put up with them. They are not debilitating to me at all, (just annoying).

I was in A-Fib for years and that got debilitating for me.

Thanks all! Cathy

A Lot of PVC's ...

by donr - 2012-09-15 06:09:16

...what's that? Like crazy? What's that mean? Can you QUANTIFY how often they are occurring? Singles? long runs?

Let me try to put numbers in perspective:

At 2400 per day (close to what Frank had), that's only 100 per hour, or about 1 every 35-40 seconds on the average. That does NOT qualify as "PVC's like crazy."

As an "Old PVC Hand," I've had them at a rate of 30 per MINUTE for hours on end. Now THAT's debilitating! I have a dual chamber PM that, in conjunction w/ meds, controls them to an acceptable, functioning level of about 1 every two minutes.

PLS don't get me wrong - your situation could easily & probably is very debilitating to you - & that's what counts. Since you are new to the pacing game, you sense them very easily because they are an anomaly in your heart beat pattern, & they scare you because they are unknown to you.

To the uninitiated, they are very dramatic & VERY frightening. I can tell you the exact time I had my first one - 9:20 PM, 15 March 1977. I thought my heart had stopped momentarily & was scared out of my skull.

Now that I've been around the Sun a few times, I have learned to ignore them. IT WAS NOT EASY! But - after my cardiom his head nurse & my EP telling me several times that "They won't kill you," I finally learned to live w/ them.

Pls talk to your cardio about them - he should tell you the same thing. The only way to conquer PVC's is to learn about them & experience them for a while & suddenly discover that, indeed, they don't kill you.

Don

PVC's like crazy

by donr - 2012-09-15 08:09:36

Yep, you got 'en like crazy!!!!!

You did not tell us you had that many. I believe that is called "Trigeminy."

I hereby pass the PVC Crown to you, Cathy! Kneel so I can place it on your head. Wear it proudly.

At one point, I had them every other beat. That one had me falling asleep at the table at Chili's restaurant & doing a face plant in my pasta - well, not really, but that makes a better story. That lead me into the ER, thence into the hosp & thence to the OR for my PM. While trrying to stay awake, I had Wife check my pulse - she got about 35 BPM. I commented that was nearly impossible - i'd be comatose at that HR, so off we went to my cardio's office - which coincidentally was just across the street. They sent me to the ER in one of their wheel chairs because I could not stay awake. In actuality, my HR was about 72, like always, just that wife could only sense every other beat.

Right now I can tolerate them at about a 10% frequency. Any more than that & I become marginally functional.

Don

You know you're wired when...

You have rhythm.

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