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Pericardial pain

by Gemita - 2020-11-26 01:42:45

Maggie, I am so relieved you sought medical help and have got some answers.  I do hope you will feel better very soon. 

Unfortunately damage to the pericardium can occur following pacemaker implant which may take a little while to treat.   The heart has a protective fluid-filled sac around it called the pericardium.  In pericarditis, the pericardium gets inflamed, and blood or fluid can leak into it.

As a matter of fact my husband suffered a similar injury following his implant procedure.  He developed sharp chest pain which initially was very difficult to diagnose but he was treated eventually with an anti-inflammatory medication, pain meds and antibiotics.  He also had fluid removed from his chest when his symptoms worsened (breathlessness).  He has now made a complete recovery and I hope it will be the same for you too.

Please keep in close contact with your doctors and report quickly any worsening symptoms, like breathlessness, chest pain, but hopefully, like hubby, things will settle for you with appropriate treatment.  In the meantime, please rest, rest, rest, drink adequate fluids, eat well and take good care of yourself.

Despite your difficulties, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving too

Several other contributors here have had this

by crustyg - 2020-11-26 03:21:26

The important thing is to remember that like any other '-itis', pericarditis is an inflammation, and the best way to treat the pain from it is with an anti-inflammatory, such as ibuprofen or diclofenac.  Make sure that you're ok to take drugs like these, and if you are, they will almost certainly be the best way of reducing the pain.

HTH.

Inflamation

by stormynw - 2020-12-09 03:56:20

Hey Maggie,
After my first pacemaker (dual-chamber) I went to the ER 5 (five) times within the first couple weeks because of serious pain.The 5th time the ER doctor said well you don't have a blood clot so you can go home now. And I was like... "What about the pain?" and he flippantly said you have pain medication and I told him that I wasn't looking for pain medication I wanted to know why I was in pain.

Lots of friends on facebook said I should go to Seattle where there are several major Hospitals with excellent specialists. (I live a couple of hours plus a ferry ride northwest of Seattle) my first thought was "Say what? Am I just supposed to just take a ferry in to Seattle and say Here I am"? But I realized I would be giving the same advice if a friend was in a similar situation so... I called to one of the biggest Medical Centers and they referred me to Virginia Mason Medical Center where I was told they would see me the very next day! Before I left town for the apointment I posted on facebook "My guess is pericarditis". Well I didn't say a word I just let the specialists do their thing and Danged if they didn't come in and tell me I had pericarditis. Why I, a non-doctor could figure it out and 5 trips to the ER and those doctors couldn't, is beyond me.

Oops sorry didnt' mean to to go on. I was only going to respond to your comment and say that I was given colchicine (which is actually an anti-gout medication) to treat the pericarditis and it worked really well and really fast. Good luck. :)
Damie Rodriguez