Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Heart PVC's

Were pathways normal, no PVC would occur.

Go back and google the PAC part. It might help you figure out why you are wrong.

Hint: people with normal conduction systems in their heart have PVC's.

Seriously, google what the normal electrical pathway is, think about the PAC vs PVC thing, and maybe STFU until you know what you are talking about. There is a reason why people talking about this stuff use very specific language. One cannot opine in an intelligent manner without knowing the language.

I just want this saved for later.

There is no defective pathway in a PVC. There is nothing defective, because a PVC isn't a defect.

Premature Ventricular Contractions. I was a paramedic for 14 years. PVCs were a big bugaboo for us.

Some patients routinely had PVCs and just lived with them. In other cases, a pt. is having 15 PVCs a minute, he has about 2 minutes to live. We see that, on the scene on our portable heart monitor, it is time to start an IV and administer drugs.

PVCs always get the attention of the medics.

Hope yours turn out ok.

Unless that medic's name is Kevin Gibson, AKA GunGeek.

Exactly. Kevin's and Goalie's PVC's are "normal". You can't make this schidt up.

I would disagree that an instance of normal signal travel through the heart could result in a PVC, since a PVC is premature by definition, and thus not normal.

Since you won't even agree with me on the meaning of normal in this context, however, I'm not sure of the utility of discussing it further.

Exactly. Kevin's and Goalie's PVC's are "normal". You can't make this schidt up.

So, Mr medic, does the route a PVC travels CAUSE the PVC like Hawk says?

FWIW, this statement, not your "drink V8" advice, is what brought me in. It is a factually incorrect statement. It demonstrates what I consider the pinnacle of dangerous in medicine: a small amount of knowledge, with the belief that said small amount is a lot.

By definition, a PVC is NOT a "pathway" issue. It is when the ventricles of your heart stimulate contraction WITHOUT stimulus going through the normal pathway (SA node to AV node to ventricles), but I'm sure you knew that. PVC's are not preceded by P waves because they do not begin up in the SA node, which happens to be in the atrium. They are PREMATURE, which means that they occur WITHOUT stimulus at all from, as you described them, "inefficient or improper" signals. They are a separate area (or areas, depending on morphology of the widened QRS, although one can have a single focal point of QRS instigation with polymorphic QRS waves if the signal is taking a different pathway each time the ventricular pacemaker fires) that is actually firing too early and independently of those "improper" electrical pathways you described.

PVC's can be related to many things not pathway related. You can have no aberrant condution issues and have massive PVC issues depending on metabolic issues, poor perfusion, etc....

Again, what is your experience? How did you come by your extensive knowledge of the cardiac electrical conduction system?

Triggers is a better word.

PS In place of "PVC travels," above, I would prefer "nerve signal travels." Your phrasing seems awkward, if not nonsensical, to me.

That is because you are ignorant of what we speak. I stick to using terms that are in common use in, oh, a cardiac cath lab or ICU. Your terms belong in your parents basement.....

There are many reasons one can have PVC's. I'll try to name a few here:

caffeine
cocaine
alcohol
cardiomyopathy
hypoxia
deep suctioning that stimulates the carina (we mess with new ICU nurses by doing this on vented patients then acting alarmed)
thyroid issues
valve issues
ischemia of cardiac tissue
psych medications (tricyclics IIRC, but could be wrong on type)

But, I'm sure you already knew all that. Just like you keep trying to act like something being hyper-efficient is the same as it being inefficient. Inefficiency in the cardiac conduction system would be anything from a common elongated P-R interval (1st degree block) to a complete A-V disassociation (3rd degree block) and they are usually manifested by delayed or slowed beats, not faster ones, you know, like PVC's.

So, again, keep digging. It makes you look reasonable, intelligent, and capable of learning. Really, it does. Honest.

So, Mr medic, does the route a PVC travels CAUSE the PVC like Hawk says?

I figured I would quote this, since some people are making assumptions about the discussion and seem to not be aware that CAUSES of PVC's have been discussed (and ignored by TRH) and they don't include the route they'll take AFTER they are initiated......