Advice appreciated

[Blondie1967]

My husband had a cardiac arrest last may , he has a icd fitted , last night without warning he started making a grunting sound and momentarily lost balance and fell against wall . He was unaware of it just happening, bp very low 80/50 drank fluids and raised it . Phoned 111 who advised to keep eye on him , but didn't think needed ambulance, hes fine today. Just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar due to bp , or maybe his icd was doing something , will speak to pacing team monday. thanks

[Sillyfroggy]

I would definitely get him checked sooner rather than later. The low BP combined with the grunting sounds concerning. It sounds like he had an event and the ICD kicked in.

[Sillyfroggy in reply to Sillyfroggy]

The grunting could be something called agonal breathing, and can happen in a cardiac arrest - it sounds like the ICD did its job very effectively but he definitely needs a cardiologist having a look.

If it happens again please call 999. Paramedics will be able to have a look at a 12 lead ecg and have a look at what’s going on

[Blondie1967 in reply to Sillyfroggy]

Thankyou so much for your advice , I will take on board all your comments, I will be contacting gp monday and would definitely call 999 if happens again :))

[Lezzers]

If your husband has a home monitor, if so do a download so it can be checked first thing Monday

[Blondie1967 in reply to Lezzers]

Have the st jude Medtronic, tried to send download after it happened, hoping pressed correct button , as nothing in booklet to tell you what to do

[Lezzers in reply to Blondie1967]

My husband has a Medtronic MyCareLink monitor & You’re right the instructions are not clear. He’s never had to do a download but i believe he has to hold the handset over his ICD. You might find more info on the Medtronic website or there’s a Facebook group called ICD-ctrd support group-uk & someone is sure to know the answer there. Best wishes, hope all is ok

[Blondie1967 in reply to Lezzers]

Thank you, really appreciate your help

[not2worry in reply to Blondie1967]

There should be a phone number on the receiver. I had the same problem when we needed to check my husbands device when he had an incident. They walked us through it and made certain the doctor received the data. I also found out that the data goes directly to our doctors office and is not ever intercepted by St. Jude-which I also learned is now owned by Abbot Labs.

Science is amazing - it’s given us more second chances and we had no idea this research would benefit us so much. Thanks to the unknown researchers who work saves us!

[Blondie1967 in reply to not2worry]

Thanks so much for your comments, science really is amazing.

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Hello and welcome to the forum! The pacing team will need to interrogate his ICD on Monday. My niece's father-in-law found himself on the kitchen floor a year ago. He felt a bit woozy and thought he had fainted. On interrogation it was found the ICD had kicked in and saved his life. Keep a close eye on him and any concerns dial 999!

[Dolphin14 in reply to MichaelJH]

Just a quick question.

Lab work is not protocol after something like this?

To check potassium levels etc. just curious.

[Lezzers in reply to Dolphin14]

I'd be interested in knowing this. I would think it would be investigated & I would expect bloods to tested.

[Dolphin14 in reply to Lezzers]

Yes I agree on interrogating and blood work.

[Blondie1967]

Hi there , thanks, nice to talk ... yes I'm hoping just low bp to blame, but will speak to pacing team monday morning

[dickielex]

I think you have effectively answered your own query. I have had an ICD for nearly 7 years and for a while I tended to blame the machine for every odd feeling, every possible symptom. But of course all sorts of things mess us about and the reasons for them are more often than not, un-related to the ICD. A check-up with the the Monitoring Team and the GP/Cardiologist will sort it out. It's horrible that these scares ALWAYS seem to happen over the weekend or public holidays!

[Blondie1967 in reply to dickielex]

Very true , it's been a rollercoaster, since the arrest in May .

[Hidden]

I have an ICD fitted and not had any issues with it. I have had dips in BP - down to 80 but this was due to my medication or standing up to quickly.

If the ICD had fired he would have known about it!

[Dolphin14]

There is an anti tach pacing mode that will try and pace out the arrhythmia first.

This may have been what happened.

My husband could feel the arrhythmia and was " on guard" for the shock but was often paced out.

When he was shocked he knew it. The first time he was shocked we were sitting at the table and I literally saw him jump in the seat.

The BP will drop if the heart rate is too high.

Just a couple things I remember from when he had his.