PM function at 100%

Hi,

I haven't posted here for a while, but after two recent hospital stays and a follow up consultation yesterday, I would like to hear some views/advice please.  Living in France, I have received very little information about my condition.  I understand it started with a Flutter diagnosis and I have had 3 ablations.  After the last one some weeks later I started with hear block and had a pm fitted.  Since then I have coninued to suffer severe palpitations and after my last hospital admission I was prescribed Cordarone (along with bisoce ge and Pradaxa which I was taking previously).  Although I feel better after stopping taking Flecanied, the palpitations continue but on a lesser degree.  My consultation yesterday was with a cardiologist from a different hospital who after reading my notes seems to think my last ablation may have been for AF as it lated for 3 hours.  She has referred me to Bordeaux for a consultation with a specialist to find out exactly what is going on.  However she did mention there was the possibility of alleviating the palpitations by having a pacemaker which completely takes over the heart.  Can anyone tell me the consequences of this.  With the translation problem I only understood her saying the possibility of the PM breaking down, not much else.  

Thanks

3 Comments

Lost in Translation?

by Grateful Heart - 2016-07-23 11:48:39

The PM should not break down so I think something was lost in translation. :)

A pacemaker that completely takes over your heart is known as a CRT.  Some have a defibrillator and some do not.  You would have 3 leads instead of 1 or 2 and it would pace both ventricles and the atria basically at 100%.  I have had one for 7 years (with the defib).  It does what my heart didn't want to do, keep sync...LOL.  I can still feel palps but we are all different.

What I think would be important is for your doctors to communicate about your condition instead of guessing the last ablation was for AFib....just my opinion.

This is your heart so you should also get more info regarding your condition.  I realize this can be difficult sometimes.

Take care and let us know what you learn.

Grateful Heart

Lost in Translation.

by Val60 - 2016-07-23 13:08:32

Thank you Grateful Heart for your reply.  I feel a little more reassured if I end up with a CRT.  I think there is always a malfunction risk, even if they are rare.  I will go to my next consultation armed with written questions.  I believe the specialist I am going to see speaks good English (I think he performed my last ablation).. but sometimes it's difficult to know what questions to ask!  What I do need though is a full explanation of my condition.  I will certainly let you know, but it may be some weeks.  Thanks again.

Agree .. Lost in translation

by IAN MC - 2016-07-23 16:16:56

Hello again Val :   I was interested in your post  because , as you know , I have  a house in SW France , not too far from your place near Bergerac  and have just returned to the UK after 3 weeks holiday there

 It was very hot when I left, I hope you are surviving OK..

 I must say , all the ex-pats I talk to rave about the French healthcare system so it sounds as though you have been really unlucky in hitting such communication problems

I agree with Grateful Heart that your last ablation must have been for something more serious than atrial flutter especially because of the anti-arrythmia drugs which you are taking.. I had an ablation for atrial flutter ( in the UK ) which took under an hour.

Pacemakers virtually never break down; and you possibly have more than just heartblock so again you have communication issues. But the bottom line is,  don't worry if you do find that you have heart chamber synchronisation problems because a CRT will take care of it. On the other hand , as you are taking amiodarone and bisoprolol you may have atrial fibrillation in which case a different  type of PM may not be the answer,

If you can't find an English-speaking cardiologist I would have thought that it is ESSENTIAL for you to find someone bi-lingual to accompany you on your next visit. You have to know what is being done to your body.

Best of luck and let us know how you get on .

Ian

 

 

 

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