New to this!

Hi guys, I had a dual pacemaker fitted in November, I'm 30 years old and was diagnosed with Sick Sinus syndrome. Originally the cardiologist thought I maybe had POTS, after a tilt table test (7mins into it) my heart stopped for 18 seconds, had 1 beat and then stopped for another 10 seconds. After coming around etc I was told what had happened and that I needed a dual pacemaker. It was fitted 3 days later. 
 

Since then I have had my check up etc and all is fine. The other day I felt a weird feeling in my throat - similar to when they turned the pacemaker on and when they checked it at my checkup. The palpatation like feeling. I was worried as my HR was quite high compared to since the pacemaker and I just didn't feel right.

 

I spoke to cardiology and they told me to send them a transmission once I was near my monitor. The following morning I still felt the same so did it and then rang them. A physiologist rang me back and said that all was fine - my rhythm was fine but had been fast and the pacemaker had switched to a different setting which is only usually used 1% of the time? 
 

The sensation has died down now and I feel ok but I just don't understand what it all means and google hasn't been much help! Aha. Does something happen for it to switch onto this different mode? 

2 Comments

Maybe not much help but...

by R2D2 - 2023-12-16 12:49:37

Since I don't have your particular condition with my heart, what I can tell you is that I have had many strange sensations with my ICD. I got it in July, and boy what a weird thing. I had just started getting a handle on the strange sensations I felt when they adjusted it a week later. It's almost like starting over. It takes awhile for your body to adjust to the new settings. Recently my device saved my life, shocking me out of a very dangerously high (260bpm) arythmia. That was 11 days ago. Since then I have been to my doctor that installed the device as well as the tech that adjusts it. They performed tests on my heart and although they didn't alter my settings at all, I still felt wonky for a bit... in fact, that was Thursday and I'm still feeling things I hadn't felt before. 

My point is, these devices are an upset to our whole system and our brains are probably the worst at not wanting to comprehend the "why" of it all. So just hang in there and hopefully you can wrap your mind around all the changes and attempt to come to terms with it all. There is definately an adjustment period that we all go through. 

 

Mode Switch

by Penguin - 2023-12-16 14:19:17

Hi and Welcome NHepworth, . 

(Edited) 

I'll try to explain what I understand from your post. 

You say that you have Sinus Node Disease and that you had some high heart rates prior to a feeling that you describe as palpitations.  Your clinic said that the device had switched to a mode of pacing which it is using approx 1% of the time.  

You do not mention any atrial arrhythmia, but you do mention that you felt the palpitations at a time when the pacemaker recorded higher h/rates.  Higher h/rates can = atrial arrhythmia and sometimes, immediately after a pacemaker implant, atrial arrhythmia may crop up. 

When the pacemaker detects atrial high rates it can mode switch from DDD to a non tracking mode (DDI usually).  This mode of pacing (DDI) is helpful because it stops the pacemaker from tracking the chaotic beats of an arrhthmia. This change in mode is called 'mode switching'. 

This sounds most likely if you have had high h/rates, but I can't be sure. 

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