skipped beats

its been 0ne week since my PM was placed and i'm experiencing skipped beats, i'll have a run of about 30 beats then a run of about 3 or 4 of beats/skipped beats(b,s,b,s,b,s) before PM i was experiencing a missed beat every 4th beat and once too often sustained VT. I had an ablation to correct VT and ended up with 3rd degree heart block. So was wondering will this go away as the heart heals or should i be concerned? I'm also on atenolol and verapamil (pre and post PM)

4 Comments

Skipped Beats

by SMITTY - 2008-04-14 05:04:04

Hi Karma,

So far as I know the only easy answer for you is that what you are experiencing is not uncommon. Especially after any kind of heart trauma such as you would get with an ablation.

My first experience with this problem was after a quadruple bypass in 1982. The PAC-PVC & skip beats hung around for months then went away for a couple of years, but have come back whenever they wanted too. In fact I've been going through this same problem since March of ‘07. That time they started for no known reason. Three stent implants since then did not help, however, they do seem to be getting a little better now.

At least one of the medications you are taking, verapamil, which is a calcium channel blocker will cause an irregular heart beat (which includes skip beats)according to my cardiologist. I have been taking a calcium channel blocker (diltiazem) for more than 20 years and he swears that is part of my problem. Of course I have been off CCB for several months at a time to pacify him and the irregular beats did not get better.

The atenolol is a beta blocker, and I am convinced that the devil came up with the basic concoction for all beta blockers. I have no idea what all they will or will not do except slow the heart rate - which should not be a problem for PM wearers - and they cause ME to feel extremely tired all the time. However, not everyone taking a beta blocker has the same side effects.

I would suggest that you give your heart more time to get back too “normal” and unless the skipbeats are more than just uncomfortable, try to ignore them. I know that is easier said than done, but my experience has been that for my doctor trying to medicate me out of the problem brought on new problems which had to be accommodated. Again for me, this is all the more reason to try and wait it out because it usually goes away, or at least gets better, given time.

I wish you the best,

Smitty

thanks

by karma - 2008-04-14 07:04:24

thanks for sharing your experiences, i'm hoping time will heal all wounds. I agree with you about the beta blockers, its like being 'bowled over with a mac truck' they make me so tired, hopefully with the pacemaker this will subside at least.

PVC's

by ElectricFrank - 2008-04-15 01:04:48

I feel like I'm becoming the PVC man!
What you are describing is most likely our old friend the PVC, and I don't mean the pipe under the kitchen sink. They are so common that they are the first thing to suspect. They create the feeling of missed beats and also those heavy thumps we get. About the only way to separate them from more serious arrhythmias is to catch them on a ecg or to wear a monitor for a few days. I'm fortunate to have been able to build my own ecg and can easily check them out. They seem like a missed beat because the PVC is a so weak we don't feel it, even if we check our wrist. The next beat that follows compensates by being more energetic than average so gives us a thump.
They can come in singles, or runs like you described. I have experienced the b,s,b,s,b,s type you describe that went on for several hours. The reason they don't make us light headed is that the weak and strong beats average out and maintain a good circulation.
The time to get concerned is if you skip several beats in a row without a compensation beat between. That can be an indication that something is happening that is interfering with the pacers ability to stimulate a beat and needs immediate attention.

frank

Missed beats!

by sweetkozy - 2008-04-15 03:04:54

Don't worry is all I have to say! In one year I had over a million PVC's (I am serioius!) and over 500,000 PAC's. It seems to be pretty common. The only way to help is take medicine. I opted to live with it without medicine and my EP said that was fine. That made me feel better. They are a pain, but I choose to live with the feeling over taking any meds. Not sure that's what it is, but sounds awfully like what goes on with me. Don't fret and to be honest....mine have gotten more frequent the longer I have had my PM. I also had ablations. 2 to be exact. Everyone is different...so yours might improve. I hope they improve for you!

Cheers:)
Jenny

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You name your daughter “Synchronicity”.

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