V lead failure

I’m a newbie.  73 years old, healthy except for node failure....no other cardiac problems.  Month ago had a VT incident...heart rate of 230 for a full minute.  Echo cardiogram and stress test...all ok.  Then a couple of weeks later had to call 911.  Passed out and chest pounding and BP way way high...240/130.  Finally the replaced both A lead and V lead.  Question is...would failure of V lead cause high BP?  Epinephrine into blood stream and no way heart rate could increase due to pacemaker? If so why would epinephrine be released?  Stress?

1 Comments

pacing

by Tracey_E - 2018-11-21 08:29:20

No idea on epinephine, but the pacer can't do what you described. All the pacer does is make your heart beat faster. If a lead fails, it stops pacing. It doesn't directly affect blood pressure, just heart rate. Also, they can only pace up to our upper limit. Most pacers can only pace up to 180 max, tho it's rare to have an upper limit that high, 130-140 is more common. Anything over that is your heart. 

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I had a pacemaker when I was 11. I never once thought I wasn't a 'normal kid' nor was I ever treated differently because of it. I could do everything all my friends were doing; I just happened to have a battery attached to my heart to help it work.