Odd Symptoms

call them

by Tracey_E - 2019-08-27 16:22:58

If you are feeling odd, call your doctor. It's possible your settings need adjusted or something else is going on.

If the heart goes fast or throwing extra beats (pvc), the pacer is only going to watch. It's a gas pedal, not a brake. It can't stop your heart from doing 180 on its own.

How did you count 180? Most monitors are easily fooled by the pacer so always count manually. 

"It's a gas pedal, not a brake"

by CatDad - 2019-08-27 17:22:01

I had to say much the same thing to my diabetes NP yesterday when explaiining why I decided to drop Trulicity after two instances of it causing palpitations. She was surprised that one could have palpitations while paced.

Even at her level of knowledge and education, she still thought PMs were like those switches on old stereos that leveled out the volume, never too loud or too soft.

CatDad

by Tracey_E - 2019-08-27 21:03:59

You'll find that once you get outside your ep's office, other medical professoinals know very little about pacing or our more rare heart condtions. That's why it's so important for us to be able to understand and explain our condition and advocate for ourselves. 

Tachycardia

by AgentX86 - 2019-08-27 22:04:03

You're not very clear about your history.  Are the PVCs and tachycardia something new after the PM implant?  That's certainly possible.  Your heart has been assaulted and it may take it a while to settle down and get used to being paced.  If these arrhythmias were "normal" for you before you got your PM, well, join the club.  A pacemaker isn't going to fix these issues.  As noted above, the PM is only an accerator.  All it can do is what you said it can do - correct for a heartbeat that's too slow. These issues need to be addressed outside the PM.

Outside the EP's office

by AgentX86 - 2019-08-31 10:30:37

Tracy is spot on, with regard to other practicioners being totally clueless to pacemakers.  In fact, it's worse than that.  They haven't a clue about heart conditions at all.  My rhumatologist, one of the best in the area, took my vitals and announced that my BP was "126 over 76, heart rate 70".  Impossible.  My minimum heart rate (daytime) is set to 80bpm.  He also noted that I was NSR, no Afib or flutter.  Also impossible as I'm in permanent Aflutter which he can't know, either way, from my pulse.  I've had an AV ablation, which decouples the atria from the ventricles.  He can only hear the ventricles, which are driven by my PM.  It's not worth the effort trying to educate doctors, though.  I don't see him for my heart.