Most Recent Messages in Batteries & Leads

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Anyone hear of something like this?

My dad had a device (pacemaker/defib.) implanted a few years ago and towards the end of July his device went off--not once, not twice, but almost twenty times. From what they can tell, the problem was with the leads and it "leaked" electricity causing the device to read the heart rate as 3x faster than it really was causing it to continuously go off. At the hospital they finally got it to stop by placing a giant magnet on his chest until they were able to get a St. Jude employee to come over an...

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time for replacement concerns

I am 53 years old. My first pacemaker was implanted when I was 36. This pacemaker worked well for 4 years until the leads were recalled.
I then got a new pacemaker and leads. I was pretty heavily sedated because I was a total wreck of nerves. This pacemaker has given me almost 13 years.
I now need to have a replacement in the next month or two.
Can anyone tell me how difficult this procedure is?
Should I be able to resume my teaching within a week?
Thank you,
Se...

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Lead problems

My son received his 1st pacer this past April to treat heart block. After just under 4 months his vetricular lead is having conduction problems. His doc says it is likely scar tissue around the site where the lead enters the heart that's insulating the electrical connection. They want to remove the existing lead and put in a new one. He has the type with a helical anchor. On line, I found a patent for a modified version of this kind of anchor that stated this scarring is a known problem with the...

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Stopped working

Hi everyone, just wanted you all to know that my pacemaker has stopped working and i have to go in in a few days time to have a new one. Mine lasts for 3 years and in May this year i started beeping, went to the hospital and was told that my batteries were going and that i have 3 months to change them before they went completely dead. As i was alarming 4 times a day and was quite loud i had the alarms turned off. To my surprise on thursday i was beeping again. Went in friday and was told it was...

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Getting a new lead in a different country

Hi all! Let me just it's wonderful that there is a site like this one. I'm 29 and I've had a pacemaker for 5 years now, due to neurocardiogenic syncope... I've felt much better since then, except for the last few months when I got exceptionally tired. So I went to see the pacemaker technician and they said they have to replace a lead. The NHS, in the UK, just sent me a letter saying that I'm being admitted on Monday to replace the lead. I'm originally from Mexico and have always been treated in...

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4 loose

My father has had his lead come loose 4 times in 6 years. He is 89 and the doctor this time is going to put a stint into the arterrt and screw into that. Has anyone had this problem before and what have they done?

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PLEASE HELP

HELLO IA M 28 YEARS OLD AND HAVE IST. I HAVE HAD 5 SA NODE ABLATIONS AND 1 AV NODE ABLATION. MY PACEMAKER WAS IMPLANTED IN 2004. I CONTINUE HAVING IST EVEN THOUGH I AM ON THE MAX OF MEDS I CAN BE ON. MY CARDIOLOGIST WANTS TO HAVE MY COMPLETE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM ABLATED AND BE PACER DEPENDENT. I HAVE SEEN TWO EP'S AND BOTH DO NOT WANT ME TO BE PACEMAKER DEPENDENT THAY THINK I AM TOO YOUNG. INSTEAD THEY HAVE THROWN AROUND THE IDEA OF OPEN HEART SURGERY AND HAVING THE OUTSIDE OF MY HEART ABLATE...

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Pacemaker extraction

I got my pacemaker in August 2006, the doctors had misdiagnosed my condition. Today after nearly 10.5 months. The pacemaker and leads were extracted. The doctor was amazing. Though, are there any side effects or complications that I should be aware of

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Pace maker battery change

It is just over 10 years since a Medtronics dual lead was implanted fopr a complete heart block with no other cardiac abnormalities. It has worked perfectly and I have travelled well near 2 million miles internationally since then.
I have been advised by the hospital to have the batteries of the PM replaced. Any advise?
Thanks,
Parar

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Recalled Pacemaker Help Please

I had the St Jude Trilogy pacemaker model 2264L back in 1998 when i was 26. I recieved a letter stating that it was recalled a few years back. Something about the battery running out faster than they expected or all at once. Now i have had it for almost 10 years and would like a new one. Has anyone had one of these pacemakers and had problems with it? I was thinking of calling St Jude and talking to them about it. I would love to have one that records all the beats because i have weird ones and...

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possible lead extraction

Hi All,

I've had a dual chamber pacemaker (due to congenital heart block) for the past 16 years. I'm scheduled in a couple of weeks for my third generator change. Not to concerned about that, but it was recently suggested to me by my EP that I may be in need of lead extraction. Ok I have to admit I had never even heard of this until a few weeks ago. So now I've been reading about it like mad and must say I'm pretty afraid of it. He says that in younger patients like myself he doe...

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single Lead VS double lead

Hi,
I have my PM (single lead VDD) 6 weeks ago because of 3rd degree heart block . I had no problem running for 1hr before it.
Since I received it I am having problem with fast walking or stairs. I talked to PM clinic last week, she turned the switch mode (or something like that) off to see if that helps, but didnt. They told me that my upper part of heart is fine, and lower part needs to be paced.
When I was in the PM clinic, she told me if I had a dual leads PM she could do a b...

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bumps

this is my 4th pacer or so but my only my second in my shoulder and my last one would periodically hit the nerve and two bumps or stomach jumps and it was done... so on well this new one is turned down pretty much as far as it can go and sometimes i can't sit or i can't lay certain ways because it is constantly jumping.... does this or has this happened to anyone else and what did the doctors do? Thanks

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Battery Life....

Hello there, I have searched high and low to see if i could find information regarding what happens when the battery life has been reached on a pacemaker and surgery has been declined. My father is 100% dependent and the decision has been made to not replace the unit. We have started to see symptoms of this, hypotension, diaphragmatic stimulation, etc. It is my understanding that the pacemaker adjusts itself and then evens out? Can anyone help me with more information? I would like a bette...

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St. Jude Medical Pacemaker

I was implanted with a St. Jude Pacemaker model 940923 on December 1, 2004. Six months ago I was told my battery had 5 years of life. Last week I was told my battery will last only one and half years. Is this normal? Shouldn't my battery be lasting longer? I am 100% dependent on my pacemaker. Thank you for any information you can give me.

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Sleeping mistake.

I just had my PM placed April 30.

Last night I was sleeping and woke up with my left arm were almost raised above my shoulder. I am hypersensitive about not wanting to pull my leads out of place. What should I feel if I do pull one out of place? I have a 2 lead devise. Will it feel just like it felt just before I have the PM if only one lead is dislodged? Do you know what the corrective measure is? Is it just a resetting of the lead(s)? Does this create more/new problems with my...

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3 lead

I went from a two lead PM to a three lead about 2 years ago. No problem. They have to add the third lead, and replace the PM with a three lead unit. Felt a lot better after.

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Getting a replacement....

I was told yesterday that its time to replace my 6 year old Guident dual chamber pacer out. The doc has decided to replace it with a Medtronic. Just curious if any one has a Medtronic and has had any issues with it. I'm not too comfortable with Guident any more because of all the issues they have had over the last couple of years but I don't know anything about Medtronic and what kind of a track record they have.

Thanks,
Janice

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Leads coming loose

Hi,
I've seen a few people write about leads coming loose from the heart or device. I was wondering how you know it has come loose, is there an intense pain, do you get shocked?
Thanks!

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Safe mode period

My pacemaker's battery is near the end of its life. It went into safe mode mid-march 2007. I'm 100% paced also. My question is how long can my device go in safe mode? The reason I'm asking is because I'm supposed to get it replaced this week, but I have a sinus infection which might have it pushed back. So i'm a little worried.

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You know you're wired when...

You get your device tuned-up for hot dates.

Member Quotes

I am just grateful to God that I lived long enough to have my ICD put in. So many people are not as lucky as us; even though we sometimes don't feel lucky.