Atrial fibrillation after pacemaker insertion

Hi there,

I had my Medtronic dual-chamber pacemaker implanted nearly two years ago now. Everything seems to be fine and it's ticking along nicely - it was fitted because of vasovagal syncope with complete heart block.

I've just come back from a pacemaker checkup, which I expected to be completely normal, only to be told that I have atrial fibrillation. The technician asked me if I was having palpitations - I wouldn't say they're palpitations - more like dizzy spells, but this had previously been put down to me being 28 weeks pregnant. He told me that the pacemaker was showing that I'd had several bouts of my upper chamber beating at 180bpm. Given that I was fitted for a pacemaker because of bradycardia (heart rate used to be around the 40-50 mark, tops), this has come as quite a surprise... He said that my pacemaker isn't set to control the top end readings, more the lower end ones and the rate-drop response function.

I am completely weirded out by this and don't know what's going on. On the one hand, the doctors are checking me out because my pressure is low and then I'm told that my heart rate is more than triple what it used to be. Can anyone shed some light on this for me, please? Has anyone else been fitted because of bradycardia and then developed AF? Any mums out there experience this whilst expecting? Can the pacemaker be re-programmed to sort out the top end, too?

Thanks for any advice!
C x

3 Comments

Dont worry you will be fine

by Scottish guy - 2008-06-25 10:06:51

Hi

You will find that pacemakers help sinus bradicard...but not afib

I was fitted with a pacemaker last year for sinus bradycardia (slow heart beat when you sleep and paroxsyml afib(that means short bouts that come and go)

I felt better immediately after implantation but my afib went from 1% - 3% so I was put on beta - blockers once a day (atenlol) now my afib attacks when last chequed are down to a maximum of 6 ins in 3 months none of attcks being longer than 60 seconds .So i guess your best option is to go on to beta blockers i am only 42 and they can make you feel tired but you will get used to them after a couple of months.

It can be very tempting to go down the road of why me but it is best to stay positive

good luck

kind regards

allan

afib after getting pacemaker

by VonnieVern - 2008-06-26 12:06:35

I got a pacemaker in October then had afib in December. I also wondered if there was a cause/effect relationship.
Vonnie

Afib caused by pacemaker?
Posted by VonnieVern on 2008-02-02 19:06

As much as I'm aware of it, I never had an atrial fibrillation episode until two months after I got my pacemaker. I'm now taking coumadin because of that episode. Is it reasonable to consider the possibility that this was caused by my pacemaker? How would you pose this question to a doctor?

Vonnie

1 comments

Afib caused by pacemaker
Comment posted by Morag on 2008-05-09 16:23.
This may be of interest:

Sweeney MO, Bank AJ, Nsah E, et al (2007). "Minimizing ventricular pacing to reduce atrial fibrillation in sinus-node disease". N. Engl. J. Med. 357 (10): 1000-8.

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/357/10/1000
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/357/10/1000

A Fib

by shockbox340 - 2008-06-30 11:06:48

Chico,

LOTS of possible causes for A-Fib. A-Fib is the most common heart arrhythmia there is, much more common than bradycardia. There is research out there that links various aspects of pacing with increased or even decreased rates of A-Fib, but the jury is still out. Most likely, your heart (which was already misbehaving) just found another way to misbehave!

Some PM's have specific therapies to try to minimize A-Fib, but you would have to check with your doctor to see if yours has them. I am not familiar with a link between pregnancy and A-Fib, but pregnancy already seems to be linked with so many bad things I wouldn't be surprised! Yet another reason to be glad I'm a man!

Best of luck!

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