What the heck is a Bigeminy?

I was out in the desert this last weekend, and all of a sudden, I got a bunch of "flutters" and then a couple of real BIG heart thumps. I got light headed also. Got real scared, enough to call my wife to come out a 100+ miles to pick me up. I went to emergency, they put a monitor on, did a EKG, that showed tthese "bigeminies". I stayed in the hospital for two days so they could determine what the cause could be. Very scary.

Any input would be appreciated.

6 Comments

Biegeminy

by Theknotguy - 2014-03-04 01:03:56

On website:

http://www.healthcentral.com/heart-disease/ask-doctor-44706-70.html

"The condition you describe, bigeminy (bi-gem-i-ne), reflects a slightly abnormal heart rhythm that is usually of no serious concern in the absence of other cardiovascular disease. This condition describes a state where your heart alternates one "normal" beat with one "premature" beat...."

The article goes on from there. You'll want to go back and look up the article.

Thanks for bringing to my attention as I used to get them too. Thought it was part of a-fib, guess it isn't.

I'd check with cardiologist. Percursor to a-fib?

Hope you get some answers.

Theknotguy

TNG is right - BUT...

by donr - 2014-03-04 02:03:45

...that's one heck of a difficult way to describe a normal beat paired w/ a PVC in a continuing pattern.

There are other pairings to make a Bigeminy pattern, but the PVC pairing is apparently the most common.

Try this link for a simpler description:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbering_aberrant_rhythms

I know what you mean about the light-headed & scared. Happened to me just before I got my PM. MOF, it was a really long period of them that made me go to the Hosp ER for the admission leading to the PM. We were just across the street from our Cardio's office & the hosp when it happened, eating in a Chili's Restaurant. I got really tired & almost fell asleep & did a faceplant into a platter of pasta. Wife took my pulse & said it was regular & 36 BPM. Got to the ER & their automatic BP machine counted it at 72 BPM - exactly TWICE what Wife counted. She at that time had never felt a PVC in my pulse & did not feel it. Now she is practiced enough to feel it.

The ER monitor showed the string of Bigeminy pattern w/ paired normal & PVC beats that went on for several hours.

It does not matter to you, the sufferer, what the ECG looks like - you usually do not have one handy to watch. What counts is HOW YOU FEEL it. Besides, the FEELING you sense doesn't really match the appearance of the ECG.

Once you get over the fear, for the PVC patterned Bigeminy, you just feel a very slow HR. You don't even sense (in most cases) the PVC's.

I thought for a long time that Bigeminy referred ONLY to PVC/regular beat pairings, but it can be any pairing. The Bigeminy just describes the pattern of pairings.

Donr

ya they are really fun

by BillMFl - 2014-03-05 08:03:15

But once you understand that they are usually not a threat you learn not to stress out. Fear and stress can really exacerbate the whole experience. I seem to get them less often and shorter duration now that I have trained myself to ignore them. Got zero sympathy from my Cardio. They listen to so many people with this I think it bores them. Watch your caffine intake.

Sympathy...

by donr - 2014-03-05 11:03:49

...you know where that is found in the dictionary!

Ya know, if Cardios had ever experienced them, they'd then have empathy & that is a lot more useful then sympathy.

Donr

Men vs Women

by Ck - 2014-03-06 06:03:51

Pretty amazing you were hospitalized for two days b/c of bigeminy! I get them all the time and no one even gives me a second look. Yet again, the difference between treatment for male vs female.

But I digress.....

So, like the others told you, bigeminies are not life-threatening. They do make you feel, well, strange. Sometimes the "thump" I get after a run of them is so strong that I swear I will have a bruise on my chest the next day.

Hopefully they told you stressors that can increase the likelihood of them: caffeine, fatigue, stress. I've never noticed these factors affect mine, but then again I've not really had a day where I didn't have at least two of those factors present.....

I looked at your bio, it doesn't look like you had an MI, but I didn't understand your reason for the pm, so I could be wrong. After an MI, it's pretty typical to suddenly feel PVCs (and therefore bigeminy), even though you've had them all along. But....this happens right after the event, not several years later. And you've had your pm for a while.

So I'm guessing they never found a reason for your episode? I think the term they use is "non determined".

Which means at this point we can offer you moral support. BillMFI is extremely lucky that he can ignore his. Even though I know they are nothing, mine can knock the wind out of me- which is hard to ignore. Especially if I'm running. If that is the case, I slow my pace and try to push through. But if I get lightheaded I have to stop. No sense passing out and chancing hitting my head.

Hope all of this helps. And sorry my post ended up being so long!

I am back!!

by 1977Scout - 2014-04-22 02:04:57

Thanks all for the comments. I have had zero alcohol over the last 45 days, been running 5-10 miles every week, biking another 15-20 same time period.

Lately, been getting low HR readings more often. Laying bed, trying to fall asleep, I sometimes wake up with a "out of breath" feeling, where I have to take a huge gulp of air, then everything calms down, until the next time.

Last night, woke up about three time with the "gulp of air" feeling. Checked my HR for the next 10 minutes. HR was in the high 30's low 40's. My St. Jude 2210, two lead unit was put in July 2011. It's et to kick in at 55 BPM. Everything has been good, been running 5 and 10 k's, did a half marathon, bike 20-40 miles on weekends, etc.
I see my cardio man this Wed. Gotta get this HR thing squared away. Makes me very nervous.

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