Strange sensation

Hello everyone I picked my husband up from the hospital yesterday after he had a CRT D inserted on Wednesday. While in hospital " plugged in" he didn't feel any odd sensations but since being at home he is experiencing a tapping sensation in his diaphragm and stomach region. It was particularly bad during the night especially  if he lay on his right hand side. It is accompanied with breathlessness and he feels like he has hiccups inside his body but not located in his chest. Is this normal and indicative of a settling in period? He is getting a bit anxious about it. 
Many thanks

Poses

6 Comments

how many leads

by dwelch - 2020-05-23 05:37:20

I have a biventrical pm and have had "belly bumps" and they had asked me about them I get them vary rarely have to stand just right breath in just right, etc..If it is constant or going on all the time at night then just call them.  If a lead came loose that could be firing off nearby muscles as well, so call them.

if everything is hooked up right the signal can be set too strong and the signal can transfer over from the heart to other nearby muscles causing them to fire as well.  So hopefully that is all it is an adjustment.

Adjustments are expected the first few months or within the first year, ideally, and esp with todays tech, it doesnt take too long to get the settings right.

Reply

by Kirschka - 2020-05-23 08:37:46

He should get this checked out, the sooner the better. I am new to all of this, but I remember my discharge instructions told me to look out for hiccups as this could be a problem. 

Diaphragm stimulation

by Selwyn - 2020-05-23 08:49:30

It is almost certain that his diaphragm is being stimulated by the device. Either the electric current is too high or a lead is misplaced. You need to contact your provider as soon as is practicable. This is not normal, nor is it likely to settle until things have been' tweeked'.

See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4938709/    and similar...

 

Strange sensations

by Poses - 2020-05-23 20:42:46

Thank you so much Dwelch, Kirschka and Selwyn for your replies. It is so reassuring knowing that help is available from caring sharing people who have first hand experiences. I took hubby to the emergency dept last night and they have confirmed what you each have outlined. Tomorrow his device will be adjusted and hopefully his " belly bumps" ( love that!) will stop and he can continue to recover. Many thanks again

Poses

The new CRT...

by Terry - 2020-05-23 23:58:02

...avoide diapragm stimulation, and offers better results by physiologival ventricular activation. It's called His bundle pacing. Google that or see www.His-pacing.org.

His pacing

by AgentX86 - 2020-05-24 00:17:56

His pacing isn't useful for a large segment of the population.  Often the heart block is below the AV node, in the Bundle of His itself, making His pacing moot.  It's also difficult and prone to failure. It may not be easy to find an EP who does the procedure.  It's not a panacea.  It's also a little late.

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