Most Recent Messages in Surgery & Recovery

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Day 1 -- all good so far

So, my pacemaker was implanted yesterday (in at 0900, home by 1630 including a 90 minute journey home), without a lot of fuss, except the conscious sedation left me conscious and not at all sedated and definitely feeling everything that was going on, so I swore at lot at the surgeon, who very apologetically said I'd had as much fentanyl as they could give me.  The local worked so I didn't feel the incision, but he brushed a nerve several times which gave me shooting pains down my...

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What is this upper left back pain!!

What the heck is this left upper back pain? I’m 11 days Post and this pain started on day 5! It’s towards the upper middle of my back right next to my shoulder blade. It’s just one little area. It feels like someone is sticking a knife in my back in that area. It only feels good to lay on my back on the heating pad. It feels like nerve pain that radiates to the back of my left arm. I’m just over it and wonder what it is. I haven’t limited my arm much. My doc said...

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Pain level

3 days Post Op... Pain on a scale of 1-10 is intermittent at about a 5. It’s like a tooth ache. Hurts more when I lay down at night. I was given hydrochodone day of surgery and released w otc Tylenol. So far I’ve taken 800 mg once or twice a day since Tuesday’s surgery. How about everyone else? 

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Day 3 Post Op

How did everyone sleep after surgery? I’m finding it hard to sleep even on my right side the pacemaker feels heavy on the left when I lay down. Think I’m going to buy a body pillow today to help at night. 

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New Pacemaker yesterday!

Hello, I just recently had a Medtronic pacemaker implanted yesterday. Last year 2017 I fainted twice in June. Each episode was different. The first time I went to the dentist, was given laughing gas for 2 wisdom teeth extractions and about an hour after the procedure I fainted Sitting in my car trying to eat a taco...scared the hell out of me but I brushed it offi as a side effect of the laughing gas and hydrocodone I was given for pain. Second fainting happened in Aug when I was hungove...

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Feeling better, then suddenly not

6 days after surgery I was feeling great, moving easily, almost no pain. Abruptly that changed. The site became sore, even to the touch. Several areas around the incisions have a burning sensation, while at the same time having a kind of numbness right on the surface. Nerve damage? No fever or sign of infection.

I am concerned that I might have unknowingly done a little too much and dislodged something. 

Apparently the wound is healing nicely, staples removed, no sign of infe...

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During and after surgery -- being alert afterward

OK, so I'm getting my pacemaker implanted on 5th September -- after 15 years horrible Afib, I guess I'm not an emergency :),  so it's a planned procedure. (AV node ablation will follow 6 weeks later, and I'm told they will test the pacemaker but not activate it until the ablation is complete -- with an average heart-rate of 150, lows of 90 and peaks of 240 I guess I don't need any extra beats).

It's planned to be a day-case op (UK) -- in at 1100, out 2 hours...

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Dizzyness and lightheadness - is this normal?

Hi 
I am new the club and so grateful to find such a site.

I am in the UK and also suffer from Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy Type 2i - although my undersanding from the docs is that this has had nothing to do with my recent heart problems.

I had a Boston Scientific Pacemaker fitted one week ago.  I previously had a number of serious fainting episodes and my heart eventually had a total blockage.  The pacemaker has raised my pulse to 60 bpm and I...

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3 hours post surgery

Pacemaker is in and wow do I feel great!

opted for almost no sedation just 10 micrograms of Fentanol and it was a walk in the park.Hardly felt the local being injected, chatted with the doctor during the procedure and that was it! All over in 45 minutes 

 

 

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PM implant surgery question about total time.

New to the club and will have  Boston Scientific dual chamber PM implanted next Wed 9/5/18.  Just wondering what the actual time from surgery prep to release is generally.

My PM is to fix very rare but a nasty sudden collapse with heart drop to as low as 27 bpm with immediate recovery to high rate for a few seconds. No nausea or dizziness and back upright in about 7 seconds.

Thanks,

Bryan

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PM implant surgery question about total time.

New to the club and will have  Boston Scientific dual chamber PM implanted next Wed 9/5/18.  Just wondering what the actual time from surgery prep to release is generally.

My PM is to fix very rare but a nasty sudden collapse with heart drop to as low as 27 bpm with immediate recovery to high rate for a few seconds. No nausea or dizziness and back up on about 7 seconds.

Thanks,

Bryan

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recovery period

I still feel a bit tired 1 week after impant. Also,my breathing is a bit more labored, not shortness of breath. Likely residual from the anastheia, the implanbt process   or silght pain.

Is this normal?

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2 days post PM and heart randomly beats hard

Hi.  I’m 2 days post PM dual chamber for exercise induced heart block. In the last 24 hrs my heart will randomly beat funny. It will pound and beat hard for about 5 mins. I don’t have any symptoms with it. It almost feels like when they did the interrogation the morning after surgery. He told me it will do that once every 23 hrs but it’s happened 3 times in less than 24 hrs. What is it and should I be worried or it’s normal? Since my PM  is for when I exercis...

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Timing of Follow-up Surgery

I just had an CRT-D implanted and the doctor said he could not attach the third wire at the time of surgery because my veins were very narrow and twisted, but he wanted to try again.

He said I could do it in 6 weeks or 6 months. Should I ask to have it done ASAP to minimize scarring . If I wait, I am afraid that the wires may be in place and the procedure will disturb them

Not sure if he has to add the third wire, does he have to remove the CRT-D .

 

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Very Tired

Hello!

I had my PM inserted 4 months ago and what I noticed is that I am very tired. I can take a  nap mid-morning, even if I had a good night's sleep. I was diagnosed with bradycardia and "sick sinus syndrome"- if that's what it's called. I was always a very active person but my energy level has plummeted since the surgery.I noticed on my iWatch that my heart rate is generally from the 50's to as high as 209!m on Verapamil, HCTZ and Metropo...

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Pain control

I have my PM surgery tomorrow 😬 and the dr said they only give Motrin for pain control post-op. What are your opinions on this? Were you given pain medicine after the procedure? I’m having them place mine under the muscle which she said will be significantly more painful and if it were her she wouldn’t choose that. Just wondering if this is standard practice or just my dr...

thanks!

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Horizontal

Hi all. 6 days post-op from PM implant for bradycardia diagnosed after an emergency RCA stent (47 y.o., fit, Medtronic Azure XT DR MRI, right side implant). I generally feel great with little to no pain or discomfort. BUT, having trouble sleeping. Find that when I lay down it feels like a weight on my chest - center, not implant site - and I have shortness of breath. Issue subsidies when I sit up and is almost nonexistent while moving around normally during the day. I have a follow up ap...

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Newbie

Hi 

going in for dual chamber PM in 10 days

not worried at all about the procedure but the sedation is a different story.Hate the thought of not being in control as had a bad experience of having a hard time waking from a general during a knee surgery and never want that feeling again 

I m leaning towards asking  for a very mild sedation just so I’m comfortable while lying there for an hour or two wondered if anyone has had the same

also I hat...

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Newbie

Hi 

going in for dual chamber PM in 10 days

not worried at all about the procedure but the sedation is a different story.Hate the thought of not being in control as had a bad experience of having a hard time waking from a general during a knee surgery and never want that feeling again 

I m leaning towards asking  for a very mild sedation just so I’m comfortable while lying there for an hour or two wondered if anyone has had the same

also I hat...

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Postop Pain with Pacemaker insertion

Good evening. Thank you for participating in this forum. I have a Biotronik dual lead pacemaker, MRI compatible. c.2016. I am retired. I became increasingly exhausted, had a lot of trouble remembering things, and then could not concentrate, etc, ... I literally would feel like sleeping on my drive home from work. It was serious. I was diagnosed in the doctor's office, where I was having a preop check for a foot surgery that was to be in 3 days time. Instead, I had a Holter monitor for 48...

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