New Pacemaker In Toledo Gives Hope To Heart Patients

[Michelle Sawicki]

HI everyone,

Dr. Grubb sent me this video the other day. Please note our correspondence after watching the video. This pacemaker will unfortunately not help most POTS patients.

Hello Dr. Grubb,

Thank you for sending this video. The person in the video had a very low resting heart rate. Is this pacemaker something that might help your average POTS patient, or just those with very low resting heart rates? I have read so much about pacemakers sometimes actually worsening POTS. How does this pacemaker differ from those others?

Michelle Sawicki, President

DINET

PO Box 55

Brooklyn, MI 49230

Dr. Grubb's reply:

This particular patient is quite unusual. The pacer would not help the average POTS patient.

Blair P. Grubb MD FACC

Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics

Director: Cardiac Electrophysiology Service

Health Science Campus

University of Toledo School of Medicine

3000 Arlington Ave

Toledo, Ohio 43614

[issie]

Thank you for sharing this with us. Advancements are being made. One day, they may get it all figured out. Here's hoping.

[Brye]

So would this only help patients with low resting heart rates? Sign me up!! Hope it works well for her!!! Interesting info!!!

Brye

[ddschool]

My doc is talking about a pacemaker b/c my heart rate is low (along w/ my BP) - when I take my meds to raise my BP, my vagal nerve kicks in, and lowers my HR even more - he is at a loss on what to do anymore b/c I can't tolerate higher doses of meds, and I have tried just about everything - at this point, I welcome a pacemaker if it will make me human again ....

[Simmy]

I'm wondering about this because, although my sleeping heart rates used to be in the high 50's, now with my meds to lower my tachy they are consistently between 40 and 42bpm while I sleep (the lowest recorded thus far was 37bpm). How low is TOO low?

[flop]

Simmy,

I would have thought that rates persistently in the low 40s would be too low, but everyone is different. What does your doctor think about your sleeping heart rates? In some people a pacemaker will allow them to tolerate meds to control their postural tachycardia but pacers are certainly not the first option - maybe you would benefit from seeing one of the very experienced POTS physicians.

Flop

[Brye]

Quote from one of my ex cardiologists "people your age don't die from HR's in the 30's" Well then ... never mind! (Oh and this was before I was even on the beta blocker) Mine runs in the high 30's at times as well. Several doctors have suggested a pacemaker. I keep holding out hope my POTS will go away and I won't have to take my atenolol anymore. If that happens I won't need a pacemaker. I can tolerate the low HR's much better than the upright tachy moments though.

Brye

[Simmy]

My doctor isn't concerned about it dropping so low every night either, I guess because I record my sleeping heart rates often and it hasn't dropped below 40bpm lately, so that puts him at ease (that makes one of us).

I know exactly what you mean Brye, I also wish I could get off these meds. The low heart rates don't bother me while I'm sleeping, in fact I'm probably not far from entering hibernation, but I'm wondering what number is considered "dangerous". I've heard 30 means 911?

[corina]

many thanks to dr grubb for helping the unusual patient, most docs just back out.

[lieze]

Interesting on the heart rate thing. When this was all starting I was concerned about the tachy and said to my boss and director of nursing and BSN that I thought I needed lanoxin a pill to lower your heart rate she shook her head no really hard and said the problem with that is that when my heart rates would return to normal this would put me in big big trouble. She seemed to think my body could handle the tachy but the Brady would be dangerous and not worth bringing the tachy down for. Just her thoughts and for me probably accurate.