What features would you like in a future pacemaker?

I've had a dual lead pacemaker for a little over 2 years now, and don't think I've had any issues with it at all.  A friend of mine who is profoundly deaf has a cochlear implant to enable him to hear, and has a remote control to adjust things like volume and several other settings.  It made me wonder if it would be any benefit to have our own remote control for pacemakers.  I am aware that there are a number of settings that technicians can change, such as rate per minute, time between atrial and ventricle firing, and doubtless more, and these can have an effect on our energy levels etc.  Is it realistic for patients to adjust these settings and see which work best for us, or is it too complex and risky, and best left to medical professionals?  I'd love to experiment and see if I can improve on my energy levels by changing a setting for a week or something, or would it help sleep if I lowered my rate per minute a little more?!  Obviously any adjustments would need to be within safe limits, or perhaps I am nieve to think these decisions can be made by a user without medical knowledge?  As a diabetic I adjust my insulin dose based on what I am eating, so can I be trusted with such "self help" power?!

Thoughts welcome, or what development would you like to see?

8 Comments

Interesting idea Andy

by IAN MC - 2017-01-10 14:52:38

I would love to be able to do my own minor adjustments simply " to see what happens "

As you know , within the limitations of the NHS , it is not always possible to ask the PM tech to make an adjustment and return tomorrow if it hasn't worked out ( although I do find that mine is very receptive to any suggestions I make )

I guess that the worst that could happen with your cochlear implant friend is that his hearing would be temporarily affected  whereas with a PM there would always be nutters who would inadvertantly risk their health with crazy adjustments . Maybe I am one of those nutters !  

Any technological advance towards self-help would have to geared towards the lowest common denominator

Cheers

Ian

Rechargable

by DampDog - 2017-01-10 15:03:44

Make them rechargeable would be the obvious one, so once it's in you can forget about it unless something fails. The cynic in me suspects it's already possible with current technology, but why push it when you can sell a new device every few years?

That said having better devices appear in the pipeline pushes the technology forwards.

 

P.S.

by IAN MC - 2017-01-10 15:11:19

A built-in Sat Nav would be useful

Ian

RR

by gleesue - 2017-01-10 16:59:13

The rate reaponse runs basically on vibration. Great when doing something that creates vibration. I do a lot of biking which does not create a lot of vibration unless on rough ground. I hab a lot of work done on my heart this last year and my heart doesn't seem to be gearing up as fast as it use to. Would be nice to be able to turn it up a notch while biking.

Jerry

monitor afib

by marylandpm - 2017-01-10 18:14:57

I don't want to change any settings  but since the pacemaker knows when you are in and out of afib, I wish there was some way for me to get that information in realtime.  

Jak

 

Home monitoring

by Lurch - 2017-01-10 20:33:42

I would love to just be able to view the information my device provides.  Allow us access to the reports our devices submit daily!

And, a wifi hotspot would be a nice addition.

Edited to add:

My Apple Watch provides a function which I can activate with the push of two buttons.  It dails 9-1-1 and allows me to talk to them.  When I hang up from that call, it automatically sends a text message to two people I have pre-identified telling them I have called for help and provides them with a map of where I am.  If my ICD should have to shock me, I would love for it to do the same thing!

Fitbit

by Sarbear - 2017-01-12 16:28:40

I'd love to see it connect to an app, so I could see a graph of heartbeat, resting periods, and active periods.  It'd be especially nice to have it in real time on a watch or something so I could target heart rate zones while I exercise.  I've been having issues getting my normal hr monitor to work since getting the pm put in, which I've heard is common.  

upgrades

by Tracey_E - 2017-01-13 14:29:56

Settings are a prescription so I don't see any of us ever getting the ability to make our own changes, tho it would be nice to hit a button and crank it into overdrive when it's time to work out!

Technology on the horizon... leadless are already in limited testing, and batteries that recharge from our motion, sort of like how a Rolex self-winds, are in the works. I hope that when each get perfected that they can combine them.

Wish list... ipod, wifi hotspot...

You know you're wired when...

Microwave ovens make you spark.

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I’m healthy as a horse because of the pacemaker.