Most Recent Messages

pm settings

can anyone tell me about settings.i have a dual lead st jude pm and it is set as low as poss as im sensitive to higher settingsbut i feel as if my heart is being squeezed on each beat. i also feel lightheaded on standing and have fast heart rate after eating and exercise tolerance is poor. i have had the pm for five years and only had these symptoms recently. i have a moveable pm and am waiting surgery for deeper implantation and am due for a pm check up soon but they are not very helpful at th...

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*********Happy Birthday**********

With our Valerie not quite up to speed yet....... I thought I should let you all know it was CathrynB'ssssssss birthday yesterday So Happy Birthday "Cathryn" He He you did not really think I would let you get away with it did you !!!!!! You girls know me don't like to talk about a ladies age but somewhere in the 21-30 range.
Anyhow I am sure we all hope you had a great day.... your pacer friends........Peter N

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Not for another Year

Hi Pacers

Got back from two days in Hobart for my checkup. Everything AOK. My battery has had little use in the four years and my technician said everything is fine. He is a great bloke. He was explaining everything to two trainee emergency nurses. Brian stood up with them and enjoyed the lecture too.! The Cardiac Sp was pleased with my progress and neither Cardio or Tech want to see me for a year. I ahve been given appts for 30 Oct 2008. Unless, of course I feel the need to c...

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Means of Telemetry

I just had a Medtronic dual-lead/dual chamber pacemaker installed. I am 4 days post-procedure. 12 hours after the operation, a representative from Medtronic came in at 0-dark-30 and woke me from a fentanyl stupor, and strapped me in, after placing what appeared to be a blue hockey-puck with leads over me left shoulder. When asked what the hockey puck was for, she replied that it allowed her to "log in" to my device and download statistics on heart rate, frequency of pacing, and percentage of...

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Jimmy and his last beta blocker

A new brake-through was discovered in a small town in South Jersey.

One morning Jimmy woke up and was running late to work. It was his first day at his new job. With his mind set on impressing his boss he decided to wake up alittle early to get a head start. He took his shower and finished dressing up. Soon after dressing up he gathered his things and headed out to work. He got to his car and realized that he forgot to take his beta blocker. He quickly ran back into his house a...

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Pacemaker Change

Hi,

I wrote last week with a low battery question and got some encouragement and support from the group. Then on Friday, I went to my Dr. and found out my battery was indeed very low and needed an immediate Pacemaker change.

I had the change yesterday and am back home. It is a strange feeling. I felt immediately better, but it was in the background as I feel sort of groggy from the anestetic and such.

But I think it will make me feel a lot better. My stam...

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Me Again

Hello Folks,

Well my trip got delayed a couple of days because I had a flair up of my arrhythmia on Tuesday morning and had to go to the doctor. I got some new medicine and I was instructed to wait until tomorrow or the next day to see if things settle down a little before we leave. So, I'll see if I can give some of you good people something to read.

Some questions I saw today were "How does a sick SA node normally respond to the use of a pacemaker? Does it become lazy, d...

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Checking back in!

Hello everyone,

It's been a longgggg while since I last posted. Thinking of everyone.

The last time I wrote I was about to pursue another opinion out of state (closer to home) regarding my SVC obstruction. I went to a major teaching hospital known for taking "tough" cases.

Well, I went in September. Met with a vascular surgeon who decided not to make any recommendations right away, but to consult with several of his colleagues about my case. (understandable).

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Symptoms

Hi.

My name is Roger and am a candidate for a pacemaker.
I currently take Atenolol for PVC's and have a slow pulse rate
currently in the forties. My major problem occurs when I am sleeping, when I will awake with extreme discomfort in my chest. My heart seems to function normally during the day.
My recent EKG and stress tests were negative apart from the PVC's. I am also able to exercise during the day without any difficulty, if it wasnt for the sleep problems I would...

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chat

Hey! randrews i tried to answer you and the chat room kept. Going away. I am back there now come on by. Or any one else here now. bowlrbob

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It is over . . .

Thanks for all the well wishes and thoughts posted in response to my earlier message . . . “It is time”.

PM installed as planned yesterday morning for sinus node dysorder. I have the expected soreness in left shoulder pocket area. My EP described the procedure as a textbook case. I had some nausea when standing within first few hours afterwards but 8 hours later I was able to walk around normally. I took only 2 pain pills yesterday and now I am dealing with it using Tylenol. My h...

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back from the doc

  • by dibs
  • 2007-11-14 07:11:04
  • ICDs
  • 1950 views
  • 5 comments

Saw the rep from Medtronic and yes we have the infamous 6949 lead. We found ALOT today.
First John has Cardio Myopathy due to the 2 arteries 90% blocked, then the heart attack. They had hoped that his heart would improve with a medicine regemin but it didnt. His heart is quite compromised due to the damage done because of the heart attack. He is paced @ 100% with a Bi-V because of this.

He passed out last night -- first time in three months. But when the EP interrogated and we...

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a very intellectual question

If you cross your eyes while undergoing an MRI procedure of your head, do your eyes look cross-eyed on the scan?

:p
~valerie

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I asked this last year. I am trying it again.

this Sunay I am leaving town for the week. Going to a national bowling tournament in Las Vegas. Do we have any members from the great city of Vegas. If so it would be fun to meet you. With some inside info I could maybe get to see a side of Vegas I have never seen. I think it would also be nice to meet with others who also have pacers or ICD's that have an interest in this club. I will be there from Monday night thru Friday night. If you are interested in meeting up or going out to a dinner some...

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My Shoulders Hurt!

Hi Everyone, my name is Jen and I'm from Scotland. I got my pacemaker just there on Friday 09th November because I've had neurocardiogenic syncope for at least 8 years and none of the meds have worked. I had the pacemaker checked on Monday and the technician said that it's been activated 15 times in 3 days which is a lot apparently. My problem just now is that although the scar hurts sometimes my left shoulder is absolute agony all the time. The pacemaker is right under the collar bone and no ma...

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Backpack Blower use with ICD

Does andyone have experience in using a backpack yard blower with and ICD implant. I have a Stihl 420 backpack blower and would like to know if anyone has had experience with using such a tool.

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My Recall!

Hello all long time no talk! Well hows everyone!, I now have to get my lead replaced as it has been recalled by Medtronic! I am so p.....sed! Anyone else got to gt their leads replaced due to Recall??

Stay Well, Colleen

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Power grids

In my state the "Rural Electrification" systems are really kicking into high gear. I pass three of those transmission farms everytime I travel a certain highway. These monsters are half as big as a football field and contian huge towers, massive coild and lines all enclosed in razor wire and chain link. My question is of course does such a contraption have an effect on my PM? I've tried other routes but there is at least one of these things on every road. It's probably just my imagination but...

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Looking good!

Hello fellow PM folks!
I'm in my 4th day of recovery to revise PM. Surgery went very well on Nov. 8th! I no longer have a wire protruding out, nor skin paper thin! The surgeon relocated underneath my muscle just below my collar bone and you can't even tell I have a PM, with the exception of the incision! It's night and day! I am very excited and thankful! They used Durabond (like superglue) to close the incision and tell me that it'll take about 5-10 days to wear off. Having it unde...

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Wondering about new cell jammers

Hi All,

Having read about the new (still illegal here) cell phone jammers that cut off cell phone connections (not sure how works tho) does anyone know if these things will affect our PM/ICD's? Plan to ask my EP @ next check-up but that isn't until Jan. 2008.

Had a not great experience today. As I am 100% PM dependent I had to go thru a security to get into a work site I have not visited before. Not the airport. So I told the security guy that I couldn't go thru the walk-...

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You know you're wired when...

You know the difference between hardware and software.

Member Quotes

My pacemaker was installed in 1998 and I have not felt better. The mental part is the toughest.