Most Recent Messages in Checkups & Settings

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New Setting and Good News....

Hey, everyone!

I have been doing some research here on individuals with third degree heart block and I wanted to change the Rate Response setting on my Guidant 1291 from on to off.

I have been having difficulty with uncomfortable heart beats, irregular heart beats, and faster than normal heart beats. These would occur off and on at any time. Bending over would raise my heart rate to much. Walking to the car would send it to around 109 - 110. Although this was not uncomforta...

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Thyroid & Heart Condition Good News

I haven’t posted for a while but have had my 6 month check today and thought I would give you an update. When my problems kicked off last summer not only was I diagnosed with Bradycardia & Third Degree Block, I also had an under active Thyroid. My pm was fitted in November and I was 100% paced both in the Atria & Ventricles.

I have never been medicated for the under active thyroid but have been monitored and over the past 6 months it has come back to “acceptable” parameters. I had wo...

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Well, went back to the doc and....

Well, I went back to the EP for my next checkup to see about going of Sotalol all together and swapping to a 25 mg dose of toporol XL.

I got some good news and some not bad, but not good news. I had no Vtach episodes, but apparently I had a couple of very short (1-2 sec) relatively slow afib episodes.

So, my EP wants me to stay on 80 mg/day of Sotalol and just take an aspirin everyday. He said they are so infrequent that he isn't worried, but it's not exactly what I wanted...

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My heart's back...

So from the recent replies I have gotten, I think I am going to ask for an EP study with mapping to be done to see if my heart has made a new pathway. Maybe that way I will have some answers. Would it be possible to actually heal all the way so I can have my pacemaker removed? That would be the ultimate!!! Thank you for all of your help...Pacie

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My heart's back...

I recently posted a message about my heart trying to beat on its own again. I'll try to be more clear this time. In May of 2001, I was fitted for a pacemaker because of complete heart block. I had recently had an ablation done to try to correct dangerous arrythmias which was successful but my heart decided it didn't want to beat no more than 23 bpm after the procedure, so I was then fitted for a pacemaker. After all those years and 2 pacemakers later, my heart had gotten worse and wasn't beating...

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My heart's back...

Hello all. I went to have my interrogation the other day and the nurse that does the interrogation found something that shocked the both of us. When she was checking my battery she noticed that my heart was trying to beat on its own. You have to understand that I had an AV ablation trying to fix my fast irregular heartbeats and after that my lower heart wouldn't do anything, so now I have 'my little friend'. She adjusted it where the pacemaker would only kick in when my heart wouldn't beat after...

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good check up

my 15 yrs old daughter had her pm checked out yesterday it was good but she usesit 30% of the time but she is good for another 2 years now so i am happy

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checkup by phone?

I have an appt. to have a checkup by phone next week. Since this is the 1st time ,I am not sure what it is that is being checked. The battery of the pacemaker or me ? If they are checking how I am pacing can they also change settings by phone? I am asking because I have been experiencing extra beats since my new lead was implanted on May 22. I had a holter monitor test about 10 days ago but so far have not gotten the results. The extra beats are annoying but I am not sure whether I shou...

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doing very well

Hey guys,
I know i've done a bit of whining during the last 10 months, mostly about feeling pacing (usually during sleeping and waking me up many times per nite). But during the last 2 checkups they made adjustments that improved it to the point where I hardly notice it. YAY!
Mine is for syncope.
Lowered my minimun rate from 60 to 50 the first time,still pacing about 12-20 times/nite. Then lowered my pacing from 120 to 100. and adjusted one of the leads to hardly kick on at a...

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Good to go

I had my first checkup Wednesday for the Guidant PM Implanted 5/16. The female technician who was an LVN ran all the tests in my cardiologists office and assured me everything is looking good. She did not make any adjustments. She merely printed out a report for the cardiologist and scheduled me for another scan in four months. However, I have an appointment with the doctor in two weeks for a followup.
My cardiologist, who has been treating me for CHF for three years, set the PM for 60 BPM...

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life after a pacemaker

hi everyone,
I am wondering how many of us feel that we are totally back to the way of life that we had before the implant. I am doing well but not back to where I was a year before the PM. Am I asking for too much? My EP doctors don't seem to care if my energy is not the same or that I sometimes get lightheaded going up stairs. Should I learn to live with my limitations or keep after the PM clinic. In the clinic we never get the same doctor twice. All are EP trained card. but they spend mo...

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Sudden Brady Response (SBR)

I have had my pm since 03 and my new EP dr, when I had my EP study in April, said that he did not know why the SBR setting had never been set up in my pacer, given the fact that I have been complaining of syncope ever since I got it. He turned that feature on, and MAN do I feel so much better!!!! I am really upset my last EP didnt know to do that. But I am grateful my new one has some sense. I havent been having any syncopal or near syncopal events since he changed it.

Sudden Brady Re...

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anyone know what a "pmt" is

hi there! i was just wondering if anyone knows what a pmt is? i have an icd and when i go to get the device interoggated my doctor always says i have some pmt episodes i guess but that it's nothing to worry about. i trust him, i just always forget exactly what it is. he explains it to me but i think i need to see it in writing to fully understand it. i know its device based but that's about it. thank you........

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doctor's appointment

My doctor's office is starting to drive me crazy! In the mail yesterday I got a letter saying that they needed to change my appointment/pace maker check. This is the fourth time it's been changed. I originally was suppoused to go the end of May. About a month before it I got a lrtter with my appointment scheduled for the Beginning of June. When I called they didn't even have the other one in the system (yet I had the print out from when I made it) the didn't even have a pm check scheduled. I cou...

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Rate Response

I have read how several on this site have requested to have their rate response turned off on their PM. I am wondering, are your rate response settings primarily for increases or decreases in your bpm.

My rate response reacts to sudden drops in rate (25 in 25 sec. or less). The problem being, whenever I truly get relaxed, guess what happens! Then surprise I am at 100 bpm. I am wondering if I would benefit from having my EP look at whether or not this feature is truly needed.

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Worried

I got PM in Noverber of 06. I am still very tired. They have changed my meds - reset my PM, put me on a sleep aid but nothing seems to work. I am going in the 23 of this month to check the settings - was wondering if anyone knew of something more I needed to tell them. I thought after I got the PM that I would have more engery but so far I haven't.

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chemical stress test

I am to have chemical stress test on Thursday, has anyone had this, and how was it?

TT

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pacemaker syndrome

could anyone tell me what pacemaker syndrome is, the doctor mentioned it in passing but didn't go into detail. thanks

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HELP Please


Hey everyone!

I have a question so I pass out 5 times in the last 4 days which quite normal for me, but last night I passed out and fell down 10 feet of stairs, hit a cement block and fell on to dirt and landed on some rocks down a little hill. The next thing I know the ambulance people and the firemen and policemen are there and putting me on the board and neck brass and I was brought to the ER.

Thankfully the doctor said I was ok nothing was broken, *AMAMAZINGLY* I...

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PM info websights

Hi All,
I am recovering from a lead replacement last Thurs. I can occationally feel what I believe is pacing on the lower right side of the left side of my chest. I am not sure whether or not to be concerned about it. I will see my Dr. on Friday. I need to have more general information on PM's and I was wondering if there are any other websights that would help me to understand more about my PM. My Dr. is good about answering direct questions but most of the time I don't know what to a...

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