Uncle confused?

My Uncle said that his Pacer was weak so they replaced it. He was told that batteries are not replaced, you get another pacer? A much larger one was installed....had to be jammed and forced in to fit? Does this sound right to anyone? The new pacer is the size of a Hockey Puck! Old Inventory! What are your thoughts?

4 Comments

Hockey Puck

by clarcona9 - 2010-12-03 09:12:37

I am new to this and my ICD is made by St Jude and has been reduced in size since they start making ICD in Canada in 2005. The upgrades of mine is its smaller,
slimer, with less screws and a more compact lead area.
So no it doesn't make any sence to me at all, Sounds like something on shelf they wanted to get rid of.

Don

bigger

by Red1958 - 2010-12-04 06:12:17

Are you sure he didnt get his pacer replaced with a pacer/defib which is bigger than regular pacer

Replacement

by ElectricFrank - 2010-12-04 12:12:48

The batteries are sealed inside the pacemaker and can't be replaced individually. Pacemakers are constantly being improved so the size and shape can change. My original implanted in 2004 was a Medtronic Kappa series. January of this year it was replaced by a Medtronic Adapt series which is slightly larger, but has a longer battery life according to the Medtronic rep. It was a tighter fit, but it couldn't be described as "jammed and forced". If your uncle was awake during the surgery he might have felt the pocket being enlarged, which could feel a lot like jamming.

frank

thanks gang!

by GMan - 2010-12-05 07:12:55

I'll tell my U about your comments. He was shaken up by all this! But at 89 maybe thats why he is still alive....the PACER!!

You know you're wired when...

You have a maintenance schedule just like your car.

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