Pacemaker Implant

Talk about a pain. My mother had to have a pacemaker put in on March 17th. They told us it would take about an hour or so. Well six hours of surgery and now the 14th of April she will be coming home I hope on friday the 16th of April. So many things went wrong. And everything that we have been told it seems to have been the doctors mess up. My mom still doesnt know what all happened to her. We havent told her the full story yet. We dont want it to upset her at this point in her recovery. But it seems that the doc didnt bother to put the dye in to see the the lead wires and ended up puncturing artery and veins. Thank god there was a vascular surg right next door. They called the other surg in to fix and repair everything. Now after 5 days in cicu and alittle over aweek in the hospital they send her to rehab. Where there she spend only to days before having to return to the hospital for even more surgery were she then spends 3 more hours because of infection and blood biuld up under the site of surgery. The people at the rehab center didnt feel it looked bad enough to notify the doctor. She finaly calls e to come look at it. AND I FREEKED when I looked at it. Took her strait to hospital. Has any one else ever gone through this? Please let me know.

2 Comments

Me...it happened to me.!!!

by Pookie - 2010-04-14 08:04:41

I had my pacer put in by a vascular surgeon on November 2 of 2004.

On November 4 I was in SO much pain I called 911 and was rushed to hospital via ambulance. 45 mins later I was dead.

Apparently, the vascular surgeon poked a hole in my heart with one of the wires/leads and the heart bled into the heart sac (which surrounds or encases your heart). With all of this blood in the heart sac, my heart could not beat - even with the pacemaker.

I had what they called a Cardiac Tamponade under emergency surgery where they drained the blood by inserting a huge (it was huge to me!!!) needle/tube inbetween my ribs into the heart sac. I was awake for the entire thing. I can't remember how much blood was taken out, but it was a lot. They called it Percarditis. Then I ended up with Pleural Effusion which was fluid around the lungs if I have that correct.

Then I was sent to our Critical Care Unit. The very next day I was told I had to have surgery again as the lead (that poked my heart) had fallen. So this is surgery #3 now.

Then the lead fell again = surgery #4.

This all happened within 10 days.

6 months later I had surgery #5 to reposition my pacemaker because it migrated to my armpit.

Just call me Lucky :)

Take care, and just remember...anything can happen.

Pookie

I am right behind you!

by ltrivone - 2010-04-20 03:04:07

I am getting ready for surgery #3...icd implant in october 09...ventricle lead detached from heart and surgery #2 in dec 09...top lead is not working...they are not sure if detached or malfunctioned, so surgery #3.

Lorraine

You know you're wired when...

Your kids call you Cyborg.

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