I have had a dual chamber pacemaker/ defibrillator for 4 years with office and phone checks about every three months. I got my device primarily because of heart failure and for that it has been very good. My EF went from 30% to 50%. Yesterday when I saw my EP they detected some "dangerous rhythms" which my pacemaker is not detecting soon enough and so they are going to put me in the hospital to do something to the pacemaker to fix this. (Clearly I don't know much about this) It is an outpatient procedure and I will go home afterward. Has anyone else experienced this and this procedure?

 

 

After my dual-chamber PM was inserted I felt rhythms that were unsettling. I thought the PM needed to be reset too. My MD found that I had PVC's and ordered Rythmol to reduce the frequency. It works for me after finding the right dosage that I had 24 hour coverage. Maybe you have PVC's? Also - ask what procedure they are planning on doing - as that should help you understand whats going on. Oh - if your PM has settings for alerts and thresholds that are not turned on or not set to detect - you might want to ask them about the settings?!

 

Sounds like they want to do a "NIPS" test (Non Invasive Something Something). They usually knock you out and then play games with your settings to see what or what does not happen. It makes sense to me as they are not so much guessing what the settings should be. Usually the doctors only need 20 minutes for their part, prep and recovery uses up most of the other time. In my case, it was simply a needle in the arm and some looney fluid to knock me out. Tell them to make sure you are "out" before they start their testing-I seem to recall they started a few seconds before I was "ready." Good luck-should be a piece of cake.

 

Thanks for the comments. I do believe the "NIPS" is what they are talking about doing. I'm glad to hear that it can be classified as a piece of cake and I'll tell them not to start too soon!

 

Noninvasive Programmed Stimulation.. in case anyone wondered... Essentially it is exactly what they do in the EP lab where they try to elicit certain heart rhythms. You dont have to be sedated but it is a nice and comfortable way of doing it.