New St Jude model
Hi
Has anyone had the new St Judt ICD implanted ? My present ICD is getting low battery and I heard they have a new replacement will require less office visits. They have some form of home monitor that tells you to go to the doctors office ?
Mike in Hobe Sound Florida
4 Comments
Packing a St Jude
by ccmoore - 2010-03-06 06:03:24
I had a St Jude PM/ICD installed May 2008. So far no shocks. But it has administered therapy, i.e. done some things to slow the heart down and got the heart down without a jump start so to speak.
The monitor is called a Merlin. My is a little bigger than a netbook computer. Operates on a hard wired phone line. Very easy to use. Open it up after you have plugged it in and hooked up the phone line and it is automatic. Take the wand out and put the cord over your neck and the wand over your PM and it downloads the data and in my case sends it to my EP. Last time I downloaded data in Feb it took about 10 minutes for 9 months of data.
You don't get any feedback unless the doctor calls you. It only reads the stored data and transmits it to the doctor.
They supplied mine at no costs.
Later,
Charlie
Merlin
by brucerob - 2010-03-06 08:03:32
I also had a St. Jude installed in May 2008. My Merlin unit is also connected to a land line but it is wireless. I have been shocked, the last time was after having Merlin. The arrhythmia clinic knew about the incident the next morning and they also knew what triggered it. It checks in with my ICD every night while I sleep and downloads any incidents. It also does a complete interrogation every 4 months (this saves me a 100 mile round trip).
I find it a great comfort having Merlin "watching over me" and wouldn't want to be without it. It was shipped to me at no charge but I'm sure I paid for it when my ICD was implanted. I am charged for the reading of the interrogation.
Best Wishes, Bruce
Remotes remotes everywhere
by cbaker - 2010-03-08 09:03:48
You should probably choose an ICD based on size, longevity, features, etc., regardless of manufacturere, because all of them have remote systems now on almost all of the new ICDs (Merlin, Carelink, etc.).
Not everyone opts for remote monitoring. It can be a real trade-off. If you want to have a copy of your reports, or like to have questions answered, or even want the office med people to remember who you are (!), good luck on the remote system. Also, for most people, every 3 months is plenty (in terms of device warnings, etc.) so if it's not terrifically inconvenient to go to the device clinic, in-person office visits can have advantages. I'm lucky to live near the clinic, so for that and the reasons above, I'm sticking with in-office interrogations, even though most docs now are pushing heavily for remote systems (it keeps patients out of their office . . . this is a good thing???)
If you opt for remote, you might also check and make sure your own doc's office accesses your downloaded information DIRECTLY. Some of the smaller offices hire third-party providers who do the interpretation. This represents privacy issues and quality of care issues as well.
Good luck.
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by Tracey_E - 2010-03-06 02:03:29
Many of the devices, not just St Judes, have home monitoring systems so you can do some of your checks from home. They are also making some new ones that use wireless so the devices check in automatically and alert your dr if you have an incident. I heard a speaker last fall talking about it but I don't remember if these are avail now or coming soon.
Do you have St Judes now? The St Judes rep that covers this area is absolutely fabulous. I've had a St Judes pm since 1993 (same rep since day one) and have always thought he was great, but didn't realize how extraordinary he was until coming here and reading others' experiences.