Update on Jessica's Possible PVC's

Thank you, everyone, for your comments and emails. I contacted two friends who are nurses (one is an online friend and the other is my next-door neighbor who is assists in heart surgeries) and both of these ladies felt that Jessica's heart rhythm wasn't urgent. I was still nervous but glad to know that it wasn't urgent and that we could wait until Monday.

I called our peds cardiologist Monday morning. (as we are getting ready to take Jessica in to see her pulmonary doctor - a regular follow-up appointment). I talked to the cardiologist, Dr. D, and he wanted to know if I felt she should go in for an EKG or if she was going back into her regular rhythm on her own? I felt that she was in rhythm more than not but as I was talking to him I put on the pulse-ox just to make sure. He could hear the beeps over the phone and he said she was having good strong, regular heartbeats and I agreed. He asked me if I thought she should have a holter monitor or an event monitor. I asked for a holter monitor because she has had so many "episodes" over the weekend I was pretty sure that it would show up on a holter monitor - and that we would get an answer much sooner. Dr. D is so cool... he went right upstairs and filled out the paperwork for the diagnostic clinic to call us to schedule the holter. Then he called to tell me to confirm that the paperwork was in and as we were talking, the diagnostic clinic called me to schedule the holter! That was FAST!

So we went to the hospital and got the holter monitor placed today. It will recored Jessica's heartbeats for 24 hours. I need to keep a log of when she complains of an "event" - what time it happens and what she is doing. I also need to log when she eats and sleeps, etc. The monitor automatically shuts off after 24 hours straight and then I can take it back to the hospital.

For those of you who may not know, an event monitor is similar to the holter except that it doesn't save the information unless you press a button. When you press the button, it saves something like the previous minute plus several minutes after the button is pressed. It will hold 3 recorded episodes and then you have to call it in and transmit it by phone. These monitors can be used for up to 30 days. I know that the doctor would contact me sooner if there was anything going on but I thought it would be best to have the holter monitor just in case her heartbeat is irregular even when she doesn't notice it.

So far she has said that her heart is beating hard 4 times. She is so funny.... she said it felt like a frog was leaping from one lily pad to another. I asked her if I was supposed to write all that in the log?! LOL Tonight two of the leads started to peel off so I helped her replace them. Of course I wrote that down on the log.

Hopefully we'll hear something within a few days.
ps
I have much more I want to write but it's 2:35am and I have to help my boys get off to school in the morning. Maybe I can write more later tomorrow today.