Anyone heard of Wolff Parkinson White syndrome?

[Brandalynn911]

On Monday I was transported to the ER because I had chest pain at work. I'm only 27 so I was sure I was being irrational by going but the paramedic said I had an abnormal EKG.

Well the EKG they gave me at the hospital actually said I had a heart attack but my cardiac enzymes came back normal. The ER doc thought I might have something called Wolff Parkinson White syndrome, which is some kind of abnormal firing of the electrical impulses in your heart. Does anyone know anything about it?

[AlexG604]

Hi Brandy, I've heard of it, and was just refreshing my memory. Needless to say, I would be cautious of being diagnosed with any cardiac condition until your doctor has done a lot of testing...I have a mitral valve prolapse, and had holter monitor, echocardiogram, etc done before anyone would confirm.

If it's WPW, that can be very mild or it can develop into more significant symptoms...fainting, dizziness and stuff like that. There's tons of stuff on the internet to read if you google it. BUT, I say again, please don't spend a lot of time stressing until you've had it completely checked out. There are a multitude of conditions that can occur, and sometimes it's completely unrelated to an actual heart condition and could even occur due to dehydration.

I hope that everything works out and that any tests etc come out well.

Alex

[resq934]

Brandy as a paramedic I do know that WPW does affect males 90% MORE than females so hopefully you had a mis diagnosis instead of actually having WPW.

Let me know how you make out

T

[Iris77]

I know this is kind of an old thread, but if you are still out there....

WPW is not as bad as you think, there ARE ways to remedy your problem. As I am sure they have told you, you cant exert yourself on WPW. It is an electrical imbalance of the heart that can make it beat erratically. You have a node in your heart, close to the surface, that dictates the electrical impulses that you have. Sometimes, you have an extra pathway, and if the impulses go the wrong way, you can have an erratic beat. This is dangerous if you exercise...you should not be exerting yourself anymore. However, there are ways to treat this problem. You can go on medicine. However, most people your age can have a procedure called radiofrequency ablation. Basically, the doctor goes in through your groin and up your heart with a catheter and ablates the extra pathway. I am a nursing student and currently work as a medical assistant at a pediatric cardiology practice. I see kids with WPW (also called preexcitation of rhythm) from time to time. THere are a few kids for whom the ablation does not work. BUT, if it does work, you are considered "normal".

Good luck.
Iris
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