crazy beats

Have had pacemaker( Medtronic) going on 2 years now and I always thought it worked well. My question is, am I supposed to feel it add a beat If the heart rate falls too low. I find that if I exercise this seems to disappear. When the extra beat occurs I can feel a fluttering for a few seconds and then it's back to normal. I see my doc next week and will tell her about this. She will probably want to change my meds. It feels like the a fib I had that prompted the placement of the pm. I thought I was done with that but maybe not . Would appreciate your input.

1 Comments

About afib

by Theknotguy - 2015-07-31 07:07:26

Currently the only "cure" for afib is ablation. Depending upon the type of afib you have that means you can have anywhere from a complete "cure" to no changes at all. Or you can come out even worse in some cases.

Most PM's aren't able to do anything about afib. Early on with my PM I went into afib with RVR and the PM just sat there the whole time and watched what was going on. PM's, in and of themselves, can't do anything for afib.

The next option is chemical ablation. Drugs like Cardizem and Metoprolol can slow the heart and reduce - in some cases - the number of afib sessions. But the body can become accustomed to the drug and you may have to switch to another. Depending upon your body chemistry and heart problems, the chemical ablation may work very well, or they may not work at all. Or the side effects can be worse than the afib.

The other thing is the natural progression of the heart problems. So while things may be working for you now, that may change with the heart problems changing.

All of the above is depressing. But there is hope. Medical science is progressing, so what I just outlined above may not always be true.

Another thing. A couple of brands of PM's have a software program that can mitigate afib. I have a Medtronic. It has a software program called APP (Atrial Preference Pacing) that can alter afib sessions. I had APP turned on after five months with my PM. (After my afib with RVR.) Over the course of a year you could see both on my graphical printouts and text printouts that APP had reduced the number of afib sessions I had. Not a great change, but a positive change none the less.

Supposedly there are over the counter food supplements that can mitigate afib too. But there are no scientific studies to back up the claims made and you have to be careful how you take the supplements. And the supplements can have side effects with other drugs you are taking. Caveat emptor.

What you can do is discuss with your EP what I've outlined above. Is there a software program for your PM? Do you need to change medications? Have they heard of any medical advancements? Have they heard of any supplements that would help? Maybe you won't get great answers, but it's good to have a dialog going.

Sorry I don't have great news for you, but I'd rather you walk in without high hopes and be pleasantly surprised rather than expect great things and be disappointed.

Hope things can get better for you.

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I’m healthy as a horse because of the pacemaker.