Re-entrant ventricular tachycardia

[sonny372]

Hello everyone. Here i am again searching for hope, help and answers. I have made posts as to this inquiry before, but as I keep reading I keep finding other possibilites as to what my problem is. Who knows though really right? I have these episodes where my heart will skip a beat and then I will feel a pause followed by 4-7 fast beats that are probably well into the 200bpm and then it slows down instantaneously back down to around or below a 100 bmp. Sort of like the flick of a switch. This speeding up and slowing down mostly happens when I have skipped beats. Hopefully it stays that way. Cause if it happended on its own that would really freak me out. Anyway I have read that this could be called re-entrant SVT or VT, where their is an extra pathway formed that causes irractic firing of the ventricles. I do not know much about it. I was wondering if anyone else did. Also I had an echocardiogram done in Nov 2007. My LV ejection fraction was 60%. No significant aortic valve disease, no significant tricuspid valve disease. Normal pulmonary systolic pressure. Left atrium is normal size. Trace mitral regurgitation. No pericardial effusion. Normal RV function and chamber dimensions. E vellocity at 16. I do not know what some of this means anyway overall my cardiologist said it was a pretty normal report, But I have these new episodes of my heart speeding up and then slowing down  suddenly after a skipped beat. I do not know. I am still waiting on my medicaid and it has been 3 weeks and they do not even have my information in the computer yet and no one returns my calls. I am trying to get this figured out. Does anyone know what I am talking about? Have you ever experienced these episodes before. Thanks to everyone in the past who has responded to this same inquiry. I am just still so confused and worried.

[twinbee]

An ablation is not considered surgery, it is called a " procedure. I suffered from a-fib and a-flutter for 5 years prior to the v-tach. I was on meds. When the v-tach started showing up (confirmed by event monitors), that is when my EP told me I had to have the ablation. So within the year I had the ablation done. The ablation process in my opinion was easy. The procedure took almost 8 hours, and my back hurt from laying flat for soo long, but I would not hesitate to go and have another one if need be. I had hardly any pain. My groins were sore, but not painful. Recovery was very easy for me also. But, everyone's experience is different. My ablation was done in January 08, and thankfully I have been in NSR ever since. I do get a rare pvc's/pac's every now and then, but nothing bothersome.

[PikaPika88]

My doctor told me ablation is not considered as surgery/operation.  

When I admitted to a hospital for a gastroscopy, a pre-admission form asks "Have you ever had a surgery or operation?"  I told her that I had an ablation and pacemaker implanted.  She told me both of them are consider as a procedure.  Neither of it is surgery nor operation.  

[sonny372]

Hi, Thanks for you post. How long did you deal with V-Tach before you could get help? Just like you my problems appeared later in life. That is what I think is the scary part. It is like they are degenerating year by year. I never use to get the fast beats after the skips until a couple of weeks ago. Now I experience these alot now. I wish I knew what it was. I was turned down for medicaid so I am trying to get some kind of insurance no matter how much it costs. I wish I could be my old self again and be active like I once was. I am glad that your doing much better. This ablation thing seems to be the most appealing and effective way. Much preferred over ICD and meds. I myself would not take meds. I would probably prefer the ablation if I can even get to that point. How was the ablation experience? Was it painful? How long did it last? Do they consider this to be a major surgery?

[twinbee]

I suffered from a-fib, a-flutter and sustained v-tach. When I had my episodes of v-tach, my heart rate was super fast, over 300. I never had the skipped beats during these episodes like you are having. On many occasions I would pass out too.
I was not born with these problems either. They seemed to just appear. First it was the a-fib, then I developed a-flutter with the a-fib, then v-tach started showing up. My EP's have no idea as to why this happened. In 2008 I had an ablation done, and so far so good. I have been in NSR ever since.

[sonny372]

I have also been wondering. I was not born with arrythmia problems and i did not start having problems until 5 years ago. Why the sudden onset. Why is my heart sensitive to stimulants now and before it was not. Has anyone ever wondered these things. It is really peculiar to me. I had an echocardiogram done with blood work and a ct scan done with no evidence of heart diseas yet I am dealing with this. I do not understand it. I bet many of you too find these things to be life altering for the worse. I do not even exercise anymore because of it. Lost of questions, but really I am venting, but still curious.