Still skipping

Hi again, I feel really bad for constantly asking questions but I really don't know as much as I'd like about my PM and what I can expect from it. I woke up this morning and my heart skipped several times in about 5 minutes. It wasn't 2 to 1 block which my cardiologist showed me on my ECG, it was more missing one beat in every 10. I was under the impression that the PM would erradicate all types of AV block? Is this likely to be fixed when I have my first pacemaker clinic on Friday?
Thanks in advance, and sorry for the constant questions!
Emma xxx

3 Comments

ask

by Tracey_E - 2009-03-11 09:03:05

Ask about it when you go for your check, but odds are very good that you are not actually skipping but rather it's just a small beat that you're not feeling. When you have a av block, the pm works by monitoring when your atrial beats. It gives your ventricle a fraction of a second (it's a programmed amount) to beat after the atria beats. If it doesn't the pm will generate a pulse to force the beat. It is also set to generate a beat in the atria if it doesn't do it on its own every second, but if you have av block, it probably doesn't need to do that very often because our atria isn't our problem.

You may need an adjustment

by BillMFl - 2009-03-11 11:03:40

To your AV delay setting. They can adjust how long the PM waits before firing your ventricle. If the delay is set a little too long you could miss a beat or have a weak beat that seemed like a missed beat.

PVC's ?

by ElectricFrank - 2009-03-12 02:03:41

The most common cause of feeling like you are skipping beats is the good old PVC. These happen when irritable heart tissue causes the ventricles to contract early. Because at that time they aren't filled it can feel like a skipped beat. Often it is followed by a heavier than usual beat and feels like a thump.

The bad news is that the pace can't do much about it. The pacer can only cause a contraction when one is missing. If the contraction comes early the pacer can't stop it.

The good news is that generally PVC's aren't a threat of passing out or arrest. They are just a nuisance.

There is one other possibility. Generally the pacer is programmed to go through a calibration cycle once/day. It is similar to the checkup in the docs office. The self test reprograms your HR up to a higher rate (mine goes to 95) and then lowers the pacing voltage til pacing fails, then immediately increases it until pacing starts. This may be repeated a few times until it determines the optimum pacing voltage. In the process the test causes you to skip a few beats.

Mine is set for 3:30AM so most of the time I am asleep. If I happen to wake up at that time I notice it.

frank

You know you're wired when...

You’re a battery-operated lover.

Member Quotes

I am not planning on letting any of this shorten my life. I am planning on living a long happy battery operated life. You never know maybe it will keep me alive longer. I sure know one thing I would have been dead before starting school without it.