my new replacement

white coat syndrome

by Tracey_E - 2024-03-19 09:30:51

White coat syndrome is real!! My numbers are always high at a doctor's office, perfectly normal at home. 

What don't you like about the Boston? Abbott bought out St Jude. Medtronic is probably the most used. The best brand depends on what your needs are. For av block, they all work about the same. 

If this one has a shorter life, it might be the condition of your heart (using it more with age) or your leads (as they age, they may need more power to get the signal through)  more so than the quality of the battery. 

I'm a moderator. For safety reasons, I'm going to edit your post to remove you phone number. We mostly keep the spammers under control, but sometimes they keep us on our toes.

Battery Life

by Penguin - 2024-03-19 13:12:58

Hi and Welcome (back!)

My BP always goes up when in front of a doctor....ask them to take it again when you've calmed down at the end! 

Re: Battery life - Yes, agree with Tracey-E re: usage.  I read her info re: ageing leads with interest. Good to know that if battery life is what matters most to you. 

You can google the various manufacturers' websites. They may even be listed on this forum in the tabs above (?).  Often they have a sales-type summary and specification which describes key features and USPs of the models they offer.  This may include features such as 'longer battery life'.  Whether or not that stands true with older leads I don't know - perhaps not? 

Having had a brand swap like you, I can see why you want to know what you're going to get. It's easiest to get the same brand  / upgraded model IMO so that you don't have to change settings that are working for you - less fiddling around post implant and a smoother transition! 

However, there are a lot of new features that appear in the meantime.  I'd ask about the best make / model for your condition and highlight any settings that you've found helpful. The clinic will know what's on offer better than you (and most of us!) but only you know what you definitely don't want! 

Hope it goes OK. 

Welcome Back

by Angry Sparrow - 2024-03-19 13:15:37

Tracey_E gave you the same answer I offer in regard to "White Coat Syndrome".  My B.P. is always unusually high at the doctors office.  Normal systolic for me is about 94, however at the Doctors they get a reading of 128 to 145ish.  When I am relaxed my B.P. reading is back in the grange I get at home.  Just as an aside, I have had the person taking my B.P. add a 1 to their reading!  Then scold me for high B.P.

Many reasons why devices have longer battery supply.  In my opinion we are living in an era with rapid improvement of cardiac care.  My second implant lasted several years, is lighter, comfort wise it is a significant improvement.  

Unless you have a special need as some athletes have, selection of your pacemaker is best left to your implant surgeon.

My E.P. is told by the Clinic he is a partner in, which devices he is allowed to implant.  I finally opted not to have my CRT-D replaced and I have changed to a different E.P. with more autonomy. Several brands of pacemakers and many choices of style, way to many choices for most of us to sort through, not like buying a luxury vehicle or new house or the American taxation process.

Many of us miss Electric Frank! Donb and DonR.  I think you will find many changes since you were last active here.  Recently PaceMaker Club has joined a larger circle so a few changes, also I think a few years ago during an update some contacts were lost.

Again welcome back.

More information needed

by crustyg - 2024-03-19 13:42:36

As far as battery life is concerned, I think you're mistaken that the shorter life was only because of a change of brand.

Boston Scientific make a number of PMs with Extended Life (==bigger battery) and these can easily last 15-16years.  I know, I have one.

Your EP-doc has asked a good question: which PM do you have in mind?  If you don't have one in mind, then perhaps the only thing that matters to you is battery life. Ask your EP-doc if you can get the latest revision of your first device.

There have been some threads here discussing pros and cons of replacing implanted devices every 7-8years versus every 14-15years.  A lot depends on what you want out of a device *and* your previous experience of box swap(s).  If previous box swaps were difficult and painful then I can easily understand the desire for a very long device life.

adding on to crusty's thoughts

by Tracey_E - 2024-03-19 17:35:53

In this age of rapid improvements in technology, I'm not sure I would even want one that lasts longer than 8-10 years. I'm on my 5th, about to get #6 later this year, and the one I have now does so much more than my first one. Getting a replacement is never fun, but the silver lining is the latest technology. 

My new replacement

by gg - 2024-03-19 19:25:34

thanks to everyone replying to my post message! may God bless Pacemaker Club ! where would one be without it? and May God Bless also Electric Frank RIP I recall following having my first implant st Judes in 2007 had major serious issues with my pulse rate beat per minute it was going crazy, as I said thanks to Electric Frank who came to my rescue explaining it all in full details ( kept and saved his response in a safe file place a very important fully detailed what my problem may have possibly been all that was needed to turn off my rate response and yes that turned out to be the cause of my problem! thanks to Electric Frank suggestion it fixed that problem! again God bless you Frank and God bless Pacemaker Club without it`s excistence none of this would have been possible!

regards GG

gg

by piglet22 - 2024-03-20 07:31:42

I don't think I've ever had a BP result in a clinical setting that has been 'normal'

Usually high, though in longer stays, it does fall back to a better 130/80.

There's a bit of a feedback loop going on

 The last one was high so you worry that this one will be too and sure enough it is.

Just getting to appointments now can be stressful.

I don't think I would want a long lifetime device either.

My existing Medtronic doesn't have Bluetooth so I miss out on more active monitoring. Given the personal circumstances, anything that communicates better is a bonus.

There has been an extraordinary growth in miniaturisation in electronic components mainly driven by mobile phone technology and so-called wearables.

The real advantages are in the sheer computing power available in processor chips and if there's one area that can benefit, it has to be in heart devices.

Of course other areas like sensory and monitoring will benefit too and possibly more patient focused devices will take the pressure off the struggling health services.

As for choosing a PM, it's usually out of my hands and just as well as long as it's not a factory refurbished one.