ck up

my husband had a ck up on his pacemaker yesterday and they said he had 2 events or episodes. what does that mean?

6 Comments

Ask The Doctor

by SMITTY - 2011-02-26 01:02:47

Hi PHYL,

I think his Dr is the only one that can really give good
answers for your question. My guess is whatever was recorded was not that important or they would have said more. Bu only the Dr can say for sure.

If I was told that after a pacemaker checkup it could mean I had short runs of skip beats, PACS, PVCs
A-fib, V-fib, fast heart beat or some other something I haven't heard of yet.

My next questions would be, episodes of what? Are they of any significance? Do I need to seet the Dr?

Good luck,

Smitty

Ya gotta ask!

by donr - 2011-02-26 04:02:41

Phyl: I assume that you go to all his appts w/ him. GOOD! You have first hand knowledge of what is happening then. My wife goes w/ me, also. Helps me remember questions to ask.

Some advice: In the future, have your husband ask to see the print out & look at it & ask about everything he does not understand about what he sees. At this point, it's probably everything! Make sure that you are looking over his shoulder & join right in asking questions. The "Pointee - Talkee" method works nicely! Point to something & ask that it be explained. If you are not a cardiologist, it's OK to not understand or even be able to pronounce the words - they are a foreign language to you.

I would disagree w/ Smitty on the point about the Dr. explaining anything to you. My experience is that they explain no more than they have to, unless it indicated near death issues. Matters not how important. You don't ask, they don't tell. Saves them time & they can get on to another patient. The most accessible person to ask questions of is the tech running the download. If they are a mfgr's rep, they know a lot & can answer all but the most technical questions. That also saves the Dr. time.

Your husband just sticks his hand out & says "May I see my report, please." If they hesitate, he leaves it out & leans forward, looking them straight in the eye. It's a report on you - you have access to it.

Good luck.

Don

2 Events

by ElectricFrank - 2011-02-27 02:02:35

All that means is that there were 2 instances of some measurement that triggered a notation.

I agree with Don. ASK. If that doesn't work DEMAND an explanation and be sure it makes sense.

I have a standing order that I am to get an immediate copy of all tests of any kind from my docs. There is not to be any messing around with "waiting for the doctor to release it".

frank

Demand An Answer

by J.B. - 2011-02-27 10:02:12

The experts, Frank and Don, have spoken. Like they said you should always be very demanding when you ask your doctor a question. Don't even think about being civil when asking your questions. After all anybody with that much knowledge about our body and its needs can't be more than half human and you know they just love antagonistic patients. You might even want to carry a big stick with you in case you need to threaten him to find out what was meant by the simple words "event" or "episode" during your husband's pacemaker checkup .

Hi Phyl

by Hot Heart - 2011-02-27 10:02:52

You obviously need to ask and check it out, but as frank said it could be anything. I had over 1,000 eposodes of afib in my first 6 months of pacing.

HH

Sounds like I hit a chord

by ElectricFrank - 2011-02-27 11:02:50

J.B.
If you take another look I said ASK. It doesn't take an expert to handle a situation like that. If you get the run around then and only then move to DEMAND.

One thing I laid on myself as an electronic instructor and support person for a complex biomedical system is "If I can't explain something in language that the average person can understand, I likely don't understand it myself". This is something that doctors could benefit by learning. Instead many respond by being evasive or intimidate.

By the way with today's electronic surveillance I would be careful suggesting that anyone carry a big stick to threaten someone else. You are likely already in the FBI data base. LOL

frank

You know you're wired when...

You run like the bionic woman.

Member Quotes

I wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for pacemakers. I've had mine for 35+ years. I was fainting all of the time and had flat-lined also. I feel very blessed to live in this time of technology.