Pace maker check up

Confused

by AgentX86 - 2018-08-23 08:36:48

You say nothing about your condition and why you received your pacemaker. You say you had an ablation but don't say what sort. Was it for AFib or flutter, or an AV node ablation? Other? What kind of pacemaker? Leads? Two (down to one)? Three (down to two - which two?)?

There are way too many unknowns, here, to understand what's going on but it's clear that you need a new EP. If he put in an unnecessary lead he should lose his license and I'm not buying that part. Something is very wrong here and you're going to have to get some answers, if you have to get ugly on them.

They don't put in leads for nothing. They take space in the vein, space that may be needed in the future. They also cost around a thousand dollars each, in the box. You've been lied to and it's time to get answers. Sorry, but you now have to be your advocate.

Hi

by HONEYBEEBUM - 2018-08-23 10:50:22

I had a pace maker put in 2017, and I just had a yearly check up.

They thought I had svt, but I had nothing to Lazer off in the heart abliation. All the symptoms where gone. They had said my heart beat was going up too fast.

They say I have sick sinus node.

I have never had a pace maker check up that was painful. I have in past had the feeling of my heart going up and down. I called a few times to complain about this check up, and they said they will never pace "that one" again in a check up .

Hi

by HONEYBEEBUM - 2018-08-23 10:52:45

I have a dual chamber pace maker.

It was put in for cardiac arrest. They caught on a loop recorder.

I will call again today.

Thank you.

dual chamber

by Tracey_E - 2018-08-23 15:46:09

It's normal to do a dual chamber, even if they think we'll only pace with one lead. Both provide information, and sometimes we end up needing both of them.  Many, many of us have two leads but only pace with one. So, if one lead isn't working correctly and it's the one we don't use, sometimes they will choose to turn it off for now and put off fixing it until the battery needs replaced. That doesn't negate that it was the right choice to start with two leads.

It sounds like they may have tested it on unipolar. They had mine on that once when I had a bad lead and they were deciding the best way to program around it (again, to put off fixing it until the battery needed replaced so I only had one surgery). I hated the feeling and they turned it off right away. I felt normal as soon as they turned it off.

So it sounds like maybe they were tinkering with the settings trying to find the best way to deal with the lead short term. Call and tell them you still don't feel right. Do you have a home monitor? If so, send a download, call and tell them to look for it.

If a lead is only a year old and has already gone bad, they may be able to replace it very easily so it may be better to do it now than to wait. Ask what your options are. You may want to get a second opinion, but I am not hearing anything out of the ordinary or alarming. Annoying, yep, it's frustrating when things don't last as long as we hope, but it sounds to me like they're doing what any good ep would do both in the choice of a two lead device and in reprogramming to work around a lead that isn't working properly. 

Leads

by Bostonstrong - 2018-08-23 16:10:17

What Tracey said. I rarely use my ventricular lead but I am grateful my EP has knew enough to do a dual lead for the times when it is needed. Very few doctors can predict the future and how much we will use each lead. I'm so glad both of mine were implanted with one surgery. This is fairly typical. I would advise you to contact your EP to discuss your symptoms and concerns. Best of luck with feeling better!