Frequent Pvc Question

[footsteps86]

many of you have read my previous posts..but i will give a background of whats been going on im a 21 m they found frequent pvcs on my halter monitor with short run of probable v.tachycardia ive had 2 stress tests,2 ecocardiograms,several ekgs,and full blood work done everything normal besides monitor.

i was put on atenolol im up to 50mg in the morning 100 at night with little change in what i feel..my symptoms are that i feel my heart pounding or pretty much all day so with the medicine it just feels lighter but i still feel it..i never actually felt extra beats.

so now we are at the point where im going to go for a consultation for ablation procedure.

well i feel the atenolol might be causing me side effects like tightness in chest and shortness of breath so im thinking about getting off the atenolol

is there anyway my condition can be complicated without meds?..the way my drs put it is that there just treating the symptoms there no underlining problem therefore theres no need for medicine in all cases only if it dirupts the persons life..well im at the point where i want to try to cope with it until i try the ablation and see how that goes so i want to know if with all the tests done should i be worried attempting to go off meds anyone else have frequent pvcs and not using any meds?

also anyone here have success with ablation for frequent pvcs? my cardiologist gave it a 70-75 percent chance of working

[Fran71]

Interesting. So if we feel our pulse during VT, would we feel a regular beat? And is there a pause after a run of PVCs?

Thanks!

[footsteps86]

ive been off the sudafed for a day and still expierencing these more extra beats on and off tonight i had more then 3 in a row at one point im sure a few times i read thats v. tach is this always dangerous or most likely not in the report from my holter in the summer it says i had  short run of probable v.tachycardia what exactly is that i dont have any other symptoms besides they now im actually feeling the extra beats in my chest then i take my pulse and its anywhere from 1-to like 5 extra beats i couldnt really count but i know it was more then 3 at one point

[jkfrench]

My cardio told me never to take any decongestants.  He said to remember the "D" as danger.  They will make your heart crazy if you are sensitive to them.  He told me I could take regular claritin (not claritin D) or benedryl which are antihistimines.  I have tried both and don't have any problems.
Most likely that is why your heart was jumping around.  Sudafed is one of the worst out there for people like us
Good luck
Frenchie

[footsteps86]

im looking for an alternative to beta blockers i think its causing problems with my allergies and breathing making them worse and im suppose to start allergy shots and i know its not wise to do that while on beta blockers so i heard calcium channel blockers dont have these same affects what calcium channel blockers are good for pvcs that i can bring up to my dr

i rescheduled my consolitation for the 8th of feb

[deedle1976]

I'm not sure about this but I think the atria just keep beating away at their normal rate under the control of the sinus node.

[Fran71]

Hi all, I was wondering: when the beats per minute of a PVC run are indicated, does that mean the rate of the extra beats? What I don't understand is: while runs of ventricular extra beats occur, what do the atria do?

Thanks!

[wrogersd]

My doctor told me NEVER take sudaphed.  I have 14,000 - 16,000 PVC's per day.  I am off all stimulants. (which means no decongestants of any kind)  Cardiologist says cafine is very bad for me but sudaphed is 100 times worse.  I also had sinus and ear infections and since I couldn't take decongestants, I took an expectorant.  It helped break up the mucus so it would drain and the antibiotics took care of the infection.

Good luck!  

[footsteps86]

anyone?

[footsteps86]

ok i just got back from my trip..just an hour or so ago i noticed something different i felt a weird shaky like sensation in my chest so i started taking my pulse and now instead of feeling one extra beat when i take my pulse occasionally for the past 30 min or so its been 2-3 extra beats in a row.. then normal regular beats..what is this and should i be concerned..because of sinus infection im taking sudafed before the trip i was taking sudafed that you have to show id for and since being back i started taking the other one that you can get withotu showing id and now i have this could the weaker decongestant be causing this and what is this

[footsteps86]

i had to postpone the appointment today i had an ent emergency im going on a flight to florida tomorrow and im have sinus issues and had fluid in my ear so i had to run there and couldnt change either appointment i will reschedule when i get back and keep you all updated

[footsteps86]

i typed exactly what my report says..i dunno it does seem weird from what you guys are telling me that he would say "frequent"..we will see what happens at the ep appointment tomorrow

[deedle1976]

Hi Iam oco,
Are you sure it says 6 Ventricular ectopics and 12 Supraventricular ectopics as 18 extra beats is not very many at all. That would usually be considered 'rare' extra beats.
My cardiologist only considers them frequent if there are more than 1% which would in your case be 878 extra beats. Your report says '<1%', which means less than 1%. In fact if the numbers are correct only about 0.02% of your total are extra beats.

[footsteps86]

thanks for replying..what my cardiologist said was that that were were frequent extra beats he put me on atenolol and i still feel the same just feels like its beating lighter and he said if medicine dont work then send me for ep study for possible ablation..as ive stated before to me i dont feel extra beats the sensation i feel all day is either my heart beating or beating hard all day i feel that the only time ive felt any extra beats was when it happens when im actually taking my pulse

so its hard for me to say if that was a bad day or what is a bad day everyday feels the same and i never feel the actually extra beats without taking my pulse i just feel my heart beating and pounding

im on an event monitor now but like i said before its hard for me to judge when to hit record cause i never feel anything different i feel the same thing all day long 24/7 and thats the sensation of my heart beating or it beating hard

[Momto3]

During the testing time you had 87,875 total heartbeats.  Of those, 6 (approximately 1% or the total) were PVC's and 12 were PAC's.  

For the PVC's, you had one isolated PVC, 2 couplets (2 in a row) and one 3-beat run (a run is 3 or more ectopics in a row).  During the run,your heart rate was 119 bpm.

For the PAC's, you had 8 isolted PAC's and 2 couplets.

I'm not sure I'm reading the part right because it's in a little different format.  But, it looks like your highest heart rate (120 bpm) occurred at 2:30pm. I'll bet this was during the PVC run.  Your lowest heart rate (50 bmp) occured at 2:05 a.m. It is common for it to be lower during sleep.

I am not a doctor, but I've had lots of holters and this looks pretty "normal".  What did you doctor say?  Were you wearing the monitor on a "bad" PVC day?  If this is a typical day for you, I can't imagine you will find a doctor to do an ablation.  If this was not one of your bad PVC days, you may want to ask the doctor for an event monitor.  With an event monitor, you can record the "events" as they occur.  When you feel something, you press record and transmit the data over the phone.  It is typically worn for 30 days.

[footsteps86]

ok heres some of the stuff the papers i have says not sure what half of this means..if someone can interpret

was on the monitor for 20 hours

Total QRS Complexes 87875
Ventricular Ectopics 6 ( <1%)
Supraventricular Ectopics 12 ( 120bpm for 00:15:30
Rate < 50bpm for 00:02:05

Ventricular Events
Isolated 1
In Bigeminal Cycles 0
Couplets 1
Runs 1
Longest 3 beats, 119bpm

Supraventricular Events
Isolated 8
Couples 2
Runs 0


so i dont know what most of this means the interpretation says frequent pvcs which is what i was told so can someone explain to me what this stuff means

[footsteps86]

oh ok...i will have the papers back tonight and type out the info on it

[Momto3]

You need to find out what percentage of your total beats were ectopic.  Let us know if there are other pertinent numbers on the report.  Good luck on Friday!

[deedle1976]

Hi there,
Total QRS complexes just means the total number of beats (including normalbeats and PVCs).

[footsteps86]

i have more info now on my condition and what was found on my previous holter monitor i do not have the papers in hands but i got my records from my cardiolgist to bring to ep on fri i will post tomorrow night details from the records all i remember it where it says qrs complexes for the 24 hour monitor it shows total over 87,000 so im assuming those are the pvcs and thats how many im having am i correct about that like i said i wll post more details tomorrow night from the paper my dad has it to make copies tomorrow

[Momto3]

Hope you're feeling better.  Hey, good luck on the 11th....Keep me posted!

[footsteps86]

i dont know the exact number or even ballpark figure i was just told frequent..i dont personally feel it each time it happens the sensation i feel is my heart pounding so its hard for me to judge my self

about the vt i have no clue

i am going the 11th

[Momto3]

You may have difficulty finding an EP willing to do an ablation.  How many pvcs are you having?  You mentioned VT on the holter....was it SVT or NSVT?   Are you seeing an EP next week?

[footsteps86]

i went to my primary dr and told him im going for consolation for ablation and he looked at me crazy he doesnt think i should do it for something like pvcs he says its not worth the risks..in my head im like he just doesnt know what its like to feel these so frequently cause hes making it like i can just go on and deal with them without medicine and with the ablation..from what i read the risks arent that great..he refered to it like someone giving me a mini heart attack

[footsteps86]

i just got off the phone with the hospital im going for consultation January 11th..please if others have stories about pvc ablation and other tips please post it helps me have a better outlook