SVT

AnthonyR27

AnthonyR27

Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Messages
33
Hi everyone,
So I received my TWE to USNA about a few weeks ago which is okay because I am even more determined now and I think a year in college first will help me to do even better is UNSA ‘23 should I get in. That being said I’ve just developed a concern for my application next year. After a recent visit to a doctor last week I discovered I have something called Super ventricular tachycardia. It’s a non-lethal heart condition which essentially has another place in my heart to send electrical impulses and when it does that my heartbeat speeds up and it makes me physically tired. Luckily there is a procedure that can cure me of this which I am having done at the end of this month. After the surgery should I be worried about medical disqualification to USNA? Will I need a waiver? Will they even ask/know since I’ll have remedied it with a surgery? Thank you for any advice, I’m a little nervous as to what this may mean for my chances next year.
 
not getting surgery will most likely require waiver process. best advice is contact USNA before surgery for guidance
 
The most important thing is your health. As a person who lives on a heart pump I strongly recommend you get the surgery. My problems started out as atrial fibrillation which is similar to SVT. Both are fast heart rates. Mine is irregular, yours is regular. Over time it can weaken your heart (hence my pump... but I'm 65 and smoked for years so don't make a big deal of it).

It's a serious change in your medical condition, so you must report it to DoDMERB. It may or may not be a DQ, and it may or may not be waiverable as I'm not DoDMERB expert. I imagine there is some period of time where surgery is an automatic DQ until the docs clear you (at least).
 
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kinnem said:
The most important thing is your health. As a person who lives on a heart pump I strongly recommend you get the surgery. My problems started out as atrial fibrillation which is similar to SVT. Both are fast heart rates. Mine is irregular, yours is regular. Over time it can weaken your heart (hence my pump... but I'm 65 and smoked for years so don't make a big deal of it).

It's a serious change in your medical condition, so you must report it to DoDMERB. It may or may not be a DQ, and it may or may not be waiverable as I'm not DoDMERB expert. I imagine there is some period of time where surgery is an automatic DQ until the docs clear you (at least).
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Okay thank you I am getting surgery it’s scheduled for April 30th. How do I report that to DODMERB?
 
Do you have plain ol' vanilla SVT like paroxysmal SVT or something like atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, or Wolff-Parkinson-While (WPW) syndrome? What meds are you on now?

If you get some type of ablation, I think the services are going to want to wait about 2 years before considering waiver. You'll have to get a holter monitor after the 2 year period and it should show only normal sinus rhythm.

While they're generally non-lethal, you may get symptoms at the most inopportune times like passing out while driving or swimming. My mother-in-law had it and she passed out while walking in the kitchen. She could have hit her head on the counter or table causing a bad head injury. It can be lethal then.
 
AnthonyR27 said:
Okay thank you I am getting surgery it’s scheduled for April 30th. How do I report that to DODMERB?
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Beats me. Call the academy or check the paperwork you have. Of course, someone knowledgeable might chime in here.
 
kinnem said:
Beats me. Call the academy or check the paperwork you have. Of course, someone knowledgeable might chime in here.
Click to expand...

I was originally pending a waiver for eyesight I wonder if there is a way to have that added to the waiver application
 
GoCubbies said:
Do you have plain ol' vanilla SVT like paroxysmal SVT or something like atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, or Wolff-Parkinson-While (WPW) syndrome? What meds are you on now?

If you get some type of ablation, I think the services are going to want to wait about 2 years before considering waiver. You'll have to get a holter monitor after the 2 year period and it should show only normal sinus rhythm.

While they're generally non-lethal, you may get symptoms at the most inopportune times like passing out while driving or swimming. My mother-in-law had it and she passed out while walking in the kitchen. She could have hit her head on the counter or table causing a bad head injury. It can be lethal then.
Click to expand...

I think it’s just the regular svt. My doctor told me that I can use meds in place of the surgery but I told him I just wanted it done with. I wasn’t using any meds to begin with. He told me that if the surgery is a success and there’s a 99% chance it will be, I’ll be “cured” of it
 
AnthonyR27 said:
GoCubbies said:
Do you have plain ol' vanilla SVT like paroxysmal SVT or something like atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, or Wolff-Parkinson-While (WPW) syndrome? What meds are you on now?

If you get some type of ablation, I think the services are going to want to wait about 2 years before considering waiver. You'll have to get a holter monitor after the 2 year period and it should show only normal sinus rhythm.

While they're generally non-lethal, you may get symptoms at the most inopportune times like passing out while driving or swimming. My mother-in-law had it and she passed out while walking in the kitchen. She could have hit her head on the counter or table causing a bad head injury. It can be lethal then.
Click to expand...

I think it’s just the regular svt. My doctor told me that I can use meds in place of the surgery but I told him I just wanted it done with. I wasn’t using any meds to begin with. He told me that if the surgery is a success and there’s a 99% chance it will be, I’ll be “cured” of it
Click to expand...

Anthony,

I am not a doc and no expert but I can share my personal experience.

I am assuming they are recommending a cathitor ablation. My son had one done for WPW. Yes this is curative.

However when we researched this the medical standard for accessions stated two years after treatment before you can be cleared without a waiver. SVT appeared to be in the same category. Fortunately this is my youngest and he has plenty of time before deciding to join the military. However he has already been told that there may be other restrictions such as he can't be a flight officer.

So it is possible you may have simply had a bad test....it happens. But in our case it was real.

Thr hopeful worst case is you may have to wait to clear DoDMERB.

Please take care of your health first. I been with a person who failed to declare a SVT WPW type problem in a wilderness setting. Although the outcome ultimately was good. It made for a difficult an anxious few days until we reached relative civilization.
 
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AnthonyR27 said:
GoCubbies said:
Do you have plain ol' vanilla SVT like paroxysmal SVT or something like atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, or Wolff-Parkinson-While (WPW) syndrome? What meds are you on now?

If you get some type of ablation, I think the services are going to want to wait about 2 years before considering waiver. You'll have to get a holter monitor after the 2 year period and it should show only normal sinus rhythm.

While they're generally non-lethal, you may get symptoms at the most inopportune times like passing out while driving or swimming. My mother-in-law had it and she passed out while walking in the kitchen. She could have hit her head on the counter or table causing a bad head injury. It can be lethal then.
Click to expand...

I think it’s just the regular svt. My doctor told me that I can use meds in place of the surgery but I told him I just wanted it done with. I wasn’t using any meds to begin with. He told me that if the surgery is a success and there’s a 99% chance it will be, I’ll be “cured” of it
Click to expand...

I think that's a good choice. I am almost certain you will not get a waiver with SVT controlled by meds. Only ablation will give you a chance to access into the military.
 
Quietlylurking said:
AnthonyR27 said:
GoCubbies said:
Do you have plain ol' vanilla SVT like paroxysmal SVT or something like atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, or Wolff-Parkinson-While (WPW) syndrome? What meds are you on now?

If you get some type of ablation, I think the services are going to want to wait about 2 years before considering waiver. You'll have to get a holter monitor after the 2 year period and it should show only normal sinus rhythm.

While they're generally non-lethal, you may get symptoms at the most inopportune times like passing out while driving or swimming. My mother-in-law had it and she passed out while walking in the kitchen. She could have hit her head on the counter or table causing a bad head injury. It can be lethal then.
Click to expand...

I think it’s just the regular svt. My doctor told me that I can use meds in place of the surgery but I told him I just wanted it done with. I wasn’t using any meds to begin with. He told me that if the surgery is a success and there’s a 99% chance it will be, I’ll be “cured” of it
Click to expand...

Anthony,

I am not a doc and no expert but I can share my personal experience.

I am assuming they are recommending a cathitor ablation. My son had one done for WPW. Yes this is curative.

However when we researched this the medical standard for accessions stated two years after treatment before you can be cleared without a waiver. SVT appeared to be in the same category. Fortunately this is my youngest and he has plenty of time before deciding to join the military. However he has already been told that there may be other restrictions such as he can't be a flight officer.

So it is possible you may have simply had a bad test....it happens. But in our case it was real.

Thr hopeful worst case is you may have to wait to clear DoDMERB.

Please take care of your health first. I been with a person who failed to declare a SVT WPW type problem in a wilderness setting. Although the outcome ultimately was good. It made for a difficult an anxious few days until we reached relative civilization.
Click to expand...


As an aside, the USN (since you used the term "flight officer") will consider waiver in flight applicants with history of WPW who has undergone an ablation. An echocardiogram will be required along with an electrophysiologic study (EPS). If the EPS doesn't induce any arrhythmias, then a waiver can be considered. If an arrhythmia can be induced, then he will need to undergo another ablation for waiver consideration in the future.
 
GoCubbies said:
I think that's a good choice. I am almost certain you will not get a waiver with SVT controlled by meds. Only ablation will give you a chance to access into the military.
Click to expand...

That’s fine I wasn’t even considering the meds option. I want it gone. When the episodes happen it makes it impossible for me to continue what I’m doing until I can get it to stop. Fortunately the procedure seems safe and simple enough. I was just concerned on what it meant for my future with USNA and the Navy
 
Quietlylurking said:
Anthony,

I am not a doc and no expert but I can share my personal experience.

I am assuming they are recommending a cathitor ablation. My son had one done for WPW. Yes this is curative.

However when we researched this the medical standard for accessions stated two years after treatment before you can be cleared without a waiver. SVT appeared to be in the same category. Fortunately this is my youngest and he has plenty of time before deciding to join the military. However he has already been told that there may be other restrictions such as he can't be a flight officer.

So it is possible you may have simply had a bad test....it happens. But in our case it was real.

Thr hopeful worst case is you may have to wait to clear DoDMERB.

Please take care of your health first. I been with a person who failed to declare a SVT WPW type problem in a wilderness setting. Although the outcome ultimately was good. It made for a difficult an anxious few days until we reached relative civilization.
Click to expand...

If a waiver is all I need, I’m not too worried. I just wanted to be sure that a waiver could be given for this
 
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