Pacemaker and B/P ?

my B/P has always been good around 110/70 +/- coupe points.

last couple days just feeling strange, so i went to my medical department at work had them check my B/P it was 153/76. call my Cardiologist went in yeterday morning she checked out my Pacemaker just to make sure nithing had changed with it. it was fine she checked my B/P it was 168/83. She was a little puzzled and said that is high i can put you on medication. I told her i would perfer to monitor it for a week and get back to her. I told her i was also feeling a little SOB at time at pressure in my neck (strange).. She sent me for a Ultrasound scan to check the PM leads and for anything with the heart said all looked find.

my question is has anyone else had a increase in B/P (3) weeks after Pacemaker for no reason? and should i be concerned? i do have a yearly appointment with my PCP this Friday..

Thanks Wally

2 Comments

No man wants to believe that.....

by donr - 2014-03-22 09:03:56

.....he just suddenly develops HBP! (Nor does a woman, either!)

BUT - it can happen. It is very nice to be able to rule out all other causes for it before finally concluding that it is just what it is.

I was just about your age when I learned I had HBP. A very short story about my lead up to it. I was 120/70 all my adult life, starting at 18. I got checked every time I went on sick call (the Army) & had an annual physical, also, that produced the same result. In late June, 1991, I had a fairly thorough physical prior to going to Saudi Arabia as a contractor to return the Army's Ammo following Gulf War I. BP = 120/70. In mid July I spent my first day out on the desert floor in 115 deg heat, 5% humidity. I kept up w/ another guy at drinking water - 2 liters in an hour. He was an old desert Rat, so I figured he knew what he was doing. Started to feel like road kill, so drank more water at lunch. Then I felt like the buzzards were circling me. A harrowing 100 MPH trip to the closest hosp found that my BP was at - you ready for this? 170/110. Took them a week in the Hosp to get me back down to normal on heavy meds. I had OD'd on water. Guy I kept up w/ turned out to have LOW BP & his kidneys processed water like a fish! Mine could only handle a PINT per hour! Been there ever since!

I was in big time denial about HBP - no way I had HBP - it had to have other causes. Kidneys, Liver, Heart, Lungs - anything but plain old HBP. That only happened to OLD people! Then I took a poll - every man my age that I met had HBP & was happy as a clam on meds.

Now - HEAR ME OUT - be aggressive at ruling out all the other potential causes, but be prepared to accept the fact that you may well have just coincidentally developed it now along w/ the PM implant. Yes, the condition of your heart & the PM MAY have caused it, but that will make zero difference in the end. You will still need meds to control it.

Note how suddenly it apparently hit you! Just like mine.

Start out by being thankful that you had symptoms. Many men (& Women) develop HBP w/o any symptoms at all. That's why it's called a "Silent Killer."

BTW: I still think that mine came as a result of swilling down all that water. But it makes no difference WHY, I still have to treat it.

Is HBP a death sentence? A resounding NO. It is common as grass among men your age or older. They just don't talk about it for that reason. It's like excreta - it just happens!

Donr

Mine Went Up Too

by NiceNiecey - 2014-03-22 10:03:35

The day I went to the ER because I was ready drop dead, my BP was quite high. I had NEVER had high BP, in fact, it had been quite low my entire life, typically 90/60 range.

I just had it checked again 2 weeks ago and it is still up there a bit (168/85 or thereabouts). I am already taking a beta-blocker for the arrhythmia but this is new.

For what it's worth, medical professionals are usually most concerned about the bottom number and yours isn't bad (nor is mine). Definitely have it checked. I am female, 55, white, non-smoker, great health except for the heart block, slightly overweight; i.e., low risk. So many changes in our lives! I know it sucks but there are worse things in life.
Niecey

You know you're wired when...

Bad hair days can be blamed on your device shorting out.

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