questions about interrogation results

greetings all:
i just had my first interrogation today and all appears very well. the medtronic adapta is performing excellently and i requested a printout which i learned from this site to do. a couple of questions:
one-my lower rate is set at 60bpm and the rate response is on. what does dectection rate 175bpm mean as well as upper tracking rate 150bpm.
two-my activity thershold on the rate response is set at medium/low. does this mean that it will activate quickly to increase my pulse faster? if so,i can use that with my low blood pressure. i did not ask these questions of the tech as i did not study the results until i got home.
by the way,the medtronics tech i had was very very good and took time to offer answers to the questions that i did have.
the one interesting thing that the tech mentioned that is contrary to most inforamtion on this site as well as my cardio is to keep the arm movement of the PM side somewaht restricted for a total of 90 days post-op. the restriction involves only arm raising motions in order to let the body completely encapsulate the PM and decrease risk of having the device relocated. it makes good sense to me as complete encapsulation would take this type of time but is contrary to most data that i have read.
thanks
steve

3 Comments

one more thing

by sugarmagnolia - 2008-02-18 10:02:57

i forgot, when the tech "deactivated" the PM, man what a bad feeling. pulse dropped and i almost felt as though i would fall out of the chair due to the lightheadedness. was okay when PM "reactivated" but still felt a little weird for a time after.
steve

Congratulations!

by ElectricFrank - 2008-02-19 01:02:54

I'm glad to hear you are having your checkups with the Medtronics rep. I have had 3 different one handling our area and all have been personable, knowlegeable, and just generally nice to work with.
Think you have the rate response thing pretty well figured out. I checked the manual on my Kappa 701 and it mentions detect rate, but I haven't found an explanation. I think it has to do with mode switching and the detection of afib or atrial tachycardia. The idea is that if the atrial beat is over the detect rate the ventricles no longer track the atrial rate. Instead they are pulsed at the upper rate. This is too keep atach from causing vtac.
What is the reason for getting the pacer? There is really no reason for having rate response on unless you have sick sinus syndrome or some other sinus rhythm problem. they like to have it on for a while after implant just to be sure, but it is a lot more comfortable to have it off. I only have A/V block and mine is off.
The first time you experience the loss of pacing during a checkup it is unsettling. Next time be ready for it and it may not be so dramatic. The anxiety of feeling your heart stop or slow way down causes the whole thing to be much worse. That was the weird feeling for a while afterward. I've become quite comfortable with it and last time I had an office check I actually asked him to turn it off to see how dependent I am. I dropped to a HR of 25 so I am pretty well dependent. However, by relaxing and breathing deep I still remained conscious and all was well within 4-5 regular beats after he turned in on.
I think some of the recommendations about how long to avoid arm movement depends on the location of the pacer. Mine is pretty well trapped between skin and bone just below my left clavicle so it can't go anywhere. It was more a matter of giving the leads time to get settled in my heart wall. If it is implanted under a breast then there might be more chance of it moving or rotating to an uncomfortable position.

Again, congratulations.

frank



thanks frank

by sugarmagnolia - 2008-02-19 03:02:26

i do have sick sinus syndrome so the rate response is on for that reason and it sure seems to do an excellent job of keeping HR up and me up as well!
i appreciate your input on my question,
steve.

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