Need Info on Vaso Vagel Syncope

I am not sure if this is what I have. I have had "lightheaded", dizzy spells often throughout my life, but no seizures. Until 9 mths ago, after the birth of my 2nd son I started having episodes of "my head is spinning" and I would become very shaky and feel like I was going to faint. I am a nurse and so I imagined my blood sugars were low and would immediately eat a bunch of sugars, drink lots of fluids and lie flat. The symptoms would eventually get a lil better. Post pregnancy some women can develop a syndrome called Fredrick-Waterhouse syndrome. It has to do with a paralization of your pituitary gland, which in turn can not tell your adrenal glands to produce a natural steroid that helps regulate your fluids and blood pressure. They thought I had this. Now, still 9 mths later after trials of steroids and multiple labs they still are trying to diagnosis me. Since March I have been hospitalized 2, with the same tests ran and all labs, Scans, Pee collected are normal. The only things is that the tilt table I have done 2, and will faint in 5 min. They now have me on meds to increase my blood pressure and help me retain salt. Symptoms still there, now accompianed with anxiety. The end diagnosis of where I am at is a rare autonamic dysfunction. I am now looking at going to a Mayo Clinic for a more in depth evaluation. Like my doctors said, this is so rare that they may see 1-2 cases like this their whole career, where as the Mayo Clinic see rare things often.
I wish you the best!

It is also known as neurocardiogenic syncope. You may find more info searching for that. I was diagnosed with it a few years back, but had the opposite problem. My doctor was overzealous and wanted to give me a pacemaker. I got a new doc instead. I was lucky because I was an undergrad in medical school, so I was able to get a lot of info.

Basically you have a hard time keeping your blood pressure up, and when it drops, your heart rate drops with it (therefore you faint). Did they do a tilt table test? That is supposed to be the only way to get a definitive diagnosis. The medulla controls bp and hr, which may be why they mentioned the EEG, but you really do need to have a tilt table test.

When I was a preceptor for a physiology course I even made a powerpoint about it. If you want it, just email me at ____@____.com and I'll send it. As for me, I was placed on Midodrine (a vasoconstrictor) to help regulate my blood pressure, but I was passing out weekly. You will probably just need to adjust your lifestyle (eat more salt, avoid extreme heat or dehydration, get up slowly, etc).

I have a lot more info, but this post is too long already. Good luck, and try not to worry.

-M.

Hi T.

There are several places on the internet to get info about this, you might want to check out some of the following sites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasovagal_syncope

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/vasovagal-syncope/DS00806

http://www.hrtcare.com/neurosyn.asp

http://www.londoncardiac.ca/pages/vvs.htm

Hope they help

Hi T., I was also sorta diagnosed with this many years ago, as a child I used to faint quite often, anytime I stood for too long or got to warm, no one really did much to address it. then in my early twenties I started having really strange dizzy spells and I like you was put through just about every test including a tilt table test, which monitors your blood pressure while you are lying flat for a half an hour and then they raise you up to a standing position and monitor you, well I fainted within 10 minutes, their conclusion was to put me on a blood pressure medication which eventually another doctor took me off of, I was told that staying hydrated was very important and that and stress bring on these episodes. I have an 8th month old daughter and I have to tell you that I actually felt better while I was pregnant(no episodes) within days after having my baby my dizzy spells and head rushes were back. I think the higher blood volume and higher blood pressure helped make me feel better, my blood pressure is usually around 90 to 106 over 60 (normal is 120 over 80) the Dr always tell me that is great, but I think maybe for me it is too low? I like you feel like I've been dismissed over the years and have to adjust to living with this. I was also wondering do you feel tired alot? Maybe someone else out there has more info to help both of us.

my mom had this same issue, she too ended up having a seizure. she kept fainting and we went round and round with the dr's till one finally put her on a heart moniter for a month. they were able to finally capture what was happenign then. I would try the heart hospital. they ended up giving my mom a pace maker and she has not had any problems since then. I would treat this very seriously- as my mom was on a heart moniter the last time she "fainted" and it actually caught her heart stopping... the normal treatment for severe vasal vagal syncope is a pacer. Keep trying different cardiologist till you find one that takes you seriously... hope you feel better!