30-Day Monitor and Ventricular Tachycardia

[skipolot]

I am very concerned as I wore a 30 day monitor from CardioNet and got my reports today. I went in to see my cardio who told me everything was great no dangerous rhythm and only PVS's and PAC's. Well today I got my reports in the mail. Several of the strips say the findings are Sinus arrythmia or normal sinus rhythm with ventricular couplet, but the most disturbing was 2 on the same day that said normal sinus rhythm with 4 beat NSVT and then one that said normal sinus rhythm with 6 beat ventricular tachycardia but on the physician interpretation at the end states only PVC's and PVC's no atrial fibrillation no ventricular tachycardia. Now this is really concerning me

[MichelleP_3811]

I would go see the EP just to get some peace of mind.  This is their field dealing with electrical issues of the heart.  Like Bromley stated, it is not likely they would do much beyond prescribing meds like beta blockers because odds are really strong you are not in any danger at least at this point.  If you were to have a heart attack down the road there may be more cause for concern but if your heart is deemed healthy then the treatment can actually cause more problems then what you are dealing with now so they approach pvcs with a lot more caution then they do with atrial issues.  The really important thing is to get a handle on the fear and stress this is causing you because it is very likely bringing on some of the ectopic activity in the first place.  I can be totally fine and something stresses me out and I get a jumpy heart so it, in and of itself, is a huge culprit to our jumpy heart.  I have little runs of pvcs once in a while.  A lot of people do and nothing ever comes of it.  You will never be able to totally rid your life of all stress but anything you can do to not add to it will help you feel much better.  I would say go and talk to someone or maybe find some books on dealing with fear and anxiety so you can get a handle on the emotional aspect of all this.  You may not be able to control what your heart is doing but you deserve to live a happy life.  So just try to do your best to work on the fear.  Hang in there and stay strong.  (((HUGS)))

[Bromley]

Hi. Couple of basics for you.
- A PVC, or skipped beat usually sets up tachycardia. You could get one PVC, and then  a string of tachycardia.
- It can be difficult for them to tell the difference between VT and SVT on monitor results.
- You can have what is called idiopathic VT, which is not usually a concern if you are otherwise healthy (i.e. no underlying heart disease causing the problem, structural/genetic abnormalities, and good heart function/ejection fraction.
- I have worked with cardionet in the past, and they can sometimes alarm people by being evasive. They try not to alarm people by not being forward with results, but this has the opposite affect. They should just be forward to begin with.

Anyway, I am glad to see you have your results to look at though.

If you visit an ep, you'll want to get clear with them just how serious a risk you are carrying. Any non invasive testing they want to do is find. After that much, in most cases, they'll say you are not at serious risk.  However, they may offer you treatments or optional diagnostics that are as risky as your condition, if not more so.  I hate to say it, but there is a fair amount of money involved here.  Just be sure to exercise care when making decisions about any treatment an ep offers.

Best of luck and sorry to hear about the situation.

[skipolot]

We'll I didn't really get a straight answer. Cardio said he saw it but he can't really say if it was VT although he kept calling it NSVT cause it was 6 beats. He said the reason was my heart was in a normal rhythm right before and he said the way it looked as if it was maybe the start of a skipped beat. As if there was a misfire or something. He said my stress echo was normal my ejection fraction was normal and that he would not be concerned but he could send me to an EP but doubts they will do much. So now I'm depressed and scared to be alone

[tom_h]

Three or more PVC's in a row I believe are considered VT.  Again, I wouldn't be concerned.

[MichelleP_3811]

That is frustrating when that happens.  Hang in there and call them back tomorrow.  Stay strong.

[skipolot]

It concerns me because he specifically said no VT but yet the strip says something different. I call and leave a message for his nurse and leave my number and they call the one number I'm not at which is not the number I left them but yet when they want me to come to an appt earlier they call every number they have for me

[MichelleP_3811]

I agree a call to the doctor to explain is in order but as he stated, in an otherwise healthy heart it isn't a concern.  I think the research is finding that unless the heart is unhealthy the chances of falling into a dangerous rhythm are small.  Or if the person is passing out that is an issue as well but otherwise they consider it in the patient's best interests to not treat as treating can in and of itself create issues, even more dangerous ones.  But I would question the cardio about the short runs and see what they have to say.  

[itdood]

Don't worry about "sinus arrhythmia".  That is perfectly normal, everyone has this.  It's just your ANS speeding up and slowing down your HR as you breath.  There's an advantage to this for gas exchange in your lungs.  It speeds up with you breath in, to get more blood to the fresh air, and slows down when you breath out.

I'd be worried about the VT too.  If it were me, i would call my doctor and ask to further discuss it.   But I can tell you, anything that is classified as NSVT, which is < 30 consecutive ventricular beats in a row isn't considered  an issue if everything else is checking out OK.  This is probably why it wasn't brought up.  It doesn't explain the discrepancy though, I'd be a bit put off by that too.

Set your mind at ease and ask!  call the doc.