Most Recent Messages in Batteries & Leads

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Two for one

I went in for Atrial lead revision on 31.3.2011 because it was thought the Atrial lead had misplaced. The Dr had difficulty getting through the fibrous tissue which had built up around the PM and said that he might have damaged the Ventricle lead in doing so.  He replaced both.  However, I was amazed by the differences between my first implant, in a London Hospital, and the revision which took place in a local hospital.

In London I was:
1.My head was totally cove...

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got the wires wrong!

My mum had her pacemaker fitted 3 weeks ago and felt really rough the first week.  On the second week she was starting to feel better but was having dizzy spells.  She told the nurse who gave her a heart monitor to wear for 3 days and it picked up pauses on her heart.

Turns out they never put the wires on right and it could have caused her to have a heart attack.  Well this morning she had to have it all done again just as her wound was getting better.  I am so an...

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Nearing EOL phase of battery

I am nearing the redline in my battery life. They tell me I may be 4 months away from needing a replacement. That was in February. They say the insurance company will not replace the battery until you have entered the redline area. My question is this: I have been feeling a lot of skipped beats and either PAC's or PVC's the last week. I usually have these on and off, but this past week it has been a lot more constant. Does anyone know what I am suppose to feel as the End of Life phase of...

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Lead Replacement

I am a 42 year old female. As a child I had 2 open heart surgeries at the age of 2 & 5 and a pacemaker put in at age 7. This was implanted in my stomach and I actually had to charge the unit weekly by plugging myself in. This one lasted till I was 17 and it was replaced with a new single wire lead. The PM was implanted into my breast tissue and it is a great location. No problems and it cannot be seen whatsoever.

I am now on my 6th pacemaker and I am due to have it replaced Apr...

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discounts

I understand that St. Judes are offering a discount if battery requires repalcent in less than 5 years, can somebody give me a clear picture?

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Replacement....Medicare

I am on my second pacemaker, have now had it for eight years and battery still checking good. However the factory rep called in my readings and factory computer gives me an 8-15 month
battery life. My Doc says Medicare has a strict time limit and I am nowhere near it. I would like to have it replaced now. I hear from others that if Doc recommends, Medicare will ok. I am wondering if I am getting accurate info and that he does not to bother with it now. I do not want to wait for any s...

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I lost my old device!!!

I had my very first ever pacemaker, and I carried it with me everywhere as a good luck charm... the last time I had it was for a genetics test I took in school, and now I can't find it. :( I only have a plastic model now.

I tried to get my second device back from the hospital but they told me they could only give me a model because the real one was a bio hazard, and they keep them to check for problems etc.

anyway I'm super upset that I can't find my first one, I just nee...

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Extraction surgery complete!

Hi, I want to thank everyone for all the advice and encouragement I received from you. I had all 5 leads removed on march 8th and now have a whole new system in place. We had hoped only the newest leads (2 from 2000 and 1 from 2007) would need to be removed but complications required the originals from 1985 be removed as well. Even though there were complications everything turned out good. They went thru both sides of my chest and eventually had to remove them from the groin so needless to say...

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pacemaker leads

Can anyone tell me if they can see any problems with the leads when you have a pacemaker check.

Shelee

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recall

I was told that one of my leads, is on a recall list and that I will be notified in about one month, to have it replaced, and that there are 14 other persons with this lead that will have to come in and have it replaced, I have a St. Jude pacemaker..was wondering if any one else has had this happen

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Epicardial leads & rate response

Hey there!

I was wondering if anyone of you has epicardial pacemaker leads, and a rate response with minute-ventilation sensor (I have MV + accelerometer) that he/she needs a lot. Just asking because ever since my atrial pacer lead was switched to epicardial, the minute ventilation sensor has a problem, and is not adapting the rate well. I can hardly get above 100-110 bpm, no matter what I do. No one knows why. Pacer manufacturer says there are not a lot of experiences with epicardial...

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Mayo Clinic

Had appointments at the Mayo Clinic about a month ago. First saw the device team, who took one look at my protruding wires and said they thought they could help me if I stayed an extra day. Well, of course. They revised the pocket, flipped the pacer, and tucked the leads under it. Problem solved! And life is much better!

Also saw the heart failure clinic where they tweaked my meds. Dropped digoxin completely and within a few days the 24/7 visual aura was completely gone. Will m...

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going for surgery

Hi everyone crossed wires and insulation break here. I am going to Phoenix tomorrow for my lead extraction surgery. I will keep everone posted as to the procedure for anyone else facing it. I have noticed one strange thing. They do not require post-op testing, as in blood testing. I don't know why. I guess I'll find out.
Thank you everyone for the comments made on my first posting.
Grooven

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new crt-d

just had a new crt-d put in with three leads . two weeks ago . had a two lead in before back in 2008 . heart working to hard . no shortness of breath . walked 1.5 miles a day no problem . played 27 holes golf every sunday (road in cart) like i said just had this done due to heart failing . feel good out walking every day . anyone else had anything like this? like to no how you are doing .

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Doctors

I've just learned that I need to have lead extraction and am trying to get as much info as possible on the subject. I've had a medtronic pm since 1968. Can anyone tell me where to research doctors that perform this surgery?

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is this normal?

just got my ID card. I have a metronic adapta dual chamber PM and St. jude's leads. is it normal to "mix and match" the generator and leads? anybody know about this? I thought PM and leads should be the same. is it a cost factor?
thanks for 'filling' me in.
veronika

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Battery Died- Trust your instincts!

I did get a bubbling feeling....my heart slowed down and I feel lousy. I called the monitoring center and had them check it at home. The nurse told me the battery had grown stronger in the four weeks between the last check. I assured him that was not possible and asked to come in. He told me that if I were nervous then I should come in....( you are kidding me right?) I ended the call by scheduling a time and letting him know I wasn't nervous just certain the battery was gone. Needless to say whe...

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lead extraction

i have had a pacemaker since 1985. i was 23. in 2000 after a battery replacement i had some severe pains immediately after the replacement. turned out i had some faulty leads and went in for replacements. they kept the faulty ones in and added two working ones switching my pacemaker to my right side. in 2007 i went in for another battery replacement. again they found a faulty lead. they inserted a new one. still leaving the old ones in. now i have 5. well it has just been discovered only one l...

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How painful to prepare for MRI-comp?

Hi friends, I've been reading posts in this section but am still confused. I have ankylosing spondylitis/AS (a disease that affects my bones/connective tissue to bones) and have had 4 spinal surgeries so far. I've had this (only one) PM for about 6 years now; it is a Medtronic dual chamber for bradycardia due to heart block in the His bundle (from inflammation from my AS). My physicians/surgeons are constantly saying that I've had "too many" CT's (5 in last 3 months alone), and they are reluc...

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Leads Replacement

After my last visit to the doc my leads are found to be on their way out. I still have 2 years left on my 2nd pacemaker and settings were changed to make the leads last longer. My question--I have had at least 2 occasions where docs wanted an MRI. They still do. My pacemaker doc seems reluctant to changed leads to MRI safe leads now that MRI safe pacers are out. I know it's risky business to take out old leads, but I'd like some feedback from all of you.

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You know you're wired when...

You name your daughter “Synchronicity”.

Member Quotes

I'm 35 and got my pacemaker a little over a year ago. It definitely is not a burden to me. In fact, I have more energy (which my husband enjoys), can do more things with my kids and have weight because of having the energy.