Pacemaker for Vasovagal Syndrome/Syncope?

Pacemaker for Vasovagal

by Gotrhythm - 2017-08-12 18:30:34

My best friend has a pacemaker for NCS (vaso-vagal syncope.) She takes no meds.

The doctor explained that the pacemaker would not keep episodes from happening. It would only keep the heart from going too slow and/or stopping.

She didn't know she had NCS until she passed out, hiit her head, got a concussion with brain bleed, and broke her wrist. While hospitalized for the aforementioned, her heart stopped for 16 seconds, and her need for a pacemaker became self-evident. Curiously enough, I was with her at the time and she did not pass out.

Before that episode she was unaware of having a problem. I had to remind her that she used to faint at needles and the sight of blood, though that hadn't happened in a long time.

She has no awareness of her blood pressure dropping, or of the pacemaker kicking in. However, the base HR is set at 50 and interrogation shows that the percentage of time the pacemaker is "working" has slowly increased over the last 18 months. There are spikes which she can correlate to working outside during hot weather. She has had no syncope or near syncope episodes since the pacemaker.

She admits she cannot tolerate the heat as she once could, but she's not as young as she used to be, either. Or she may have finally learned to recognize the danger signals.

I expect how aware one would be of episodes after a pacemaker might depend on how aware one was before.

Episodes

by TBrous&Chip - 2017-08-13 08:27:18

Over time as my body has changed (aged) some symptoms returned causing a need for pm adjustments.  Currently I am also trying Fludrocortisone to reduce symptoms. The pm only assists the heart rate. Yet heart rate and blood pressure work together in our body. A return of symptoms could be caused by either.  As our health changes then settings need adjustment and/or there is a need for meds.

pm for vasovegal

by Sarbear - 2017-08-14 17:56:14

I have a pacemaker for vasovegol syncope.  I had it put in over a year and a half ago and have only fainted once since then (I was fainting almost weekly before it was put in).  Its been an absolute game changer for me.  It also has lengthened the prodromal period so I have been able to stop it by sitting down a few times.