Most Recent Messages in Surgery & Recovery

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Puncturing a lung to add a new lead

My 9 year old Medtronic 2 lead pacemaker is coming up to needing to be replaced due to the battery reaching end of life. I am 100% dependent following a surgical complication when my aortic valve was replaced at that time.

The doctor at Barts hospital said that they are considering changing the type of device to a three lead version, as this is more suitable for someone being paced long term (I am now 56yo), and can also help with heart failure. However, he said it comes with some risks...

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post surgery restrictions

I am scheduled for a pacemaker Sept. 12th, due to low heart rate (although today it was 52bpm up from 40bpm, resting).  My biggest concern, apart from, of course, the surgery itself, is how I am going to cope afterwards.  I am a single woman of 78, caring for 7 rescued senior special needs horses and 2 dogs and running a retail clothing store.  I have found someone to run the store for me for a few weeks and another person to feed/medicate the horses four days a week, still loo...

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New Pacemaker

I had a Biotronic 2 lead put in on 8/25/22 because of level 3 heart block.  My heart still races a little and when I stand up I get a little dizzy for a couple of seconds.  Is this normal for someone that has only had it for four days?  I don't want to worry about something that I don't need to.

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New to the club

I will be having my PM implanted tomorrow. I don't know a lot about restrictions and want to be prepared. Are there specific household appliances and/or personal care appliances that I need to avoid or be cautious around?  Thanks in advance 

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Throat tightness

It's been 1 week since I got my PM. I can finally breathe when I climb stairs! But I've noticed that I sometimes get a tightness at the base of my throat. It happened when the shower got steamy. I opened the door to let cool air in and then I was ok. I also tried blow drying my hair with my dryer on a stand at least 2 ft away from my PC. But I started getting that tight sensation at the bottom of my throat. And lastly, when I'm falling asleep I will lose my breath maybe...

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I Get It

I get it, everybody is different so it's hard to say what a "normal" recovery is. And the doctors are certainly not forthcoming with information (eye roll). I'm 4 weeks post op (pm for 2nd degree av block/bradycardia) and am so tired. I make it through work, then I'm toast. I take a nap, have some dinner, and then I go to sleep for the night. Is this typical? Unusual? Does it eventually pass? When might my pre-op energy levels return? I need a pep talk!&nb...

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New to the Pacemaker Club

Just had a dual chambered pacemaker installed on 8/22/22. Other than being sore I have experienced heart flutters usually 4 to 5 times a day. But I have so much more energy and not tired all the time. Hopefully the heart flutters will go away in due time as my body adjusts to the PM. Glad to be on here with others who share stories about their experience living with a pacemaker. 

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New to the Club!

I just received my pacemaker 4 days ago. Came as a shock. I had no medical issues, until one day I started haveing shortness of breath. Mostly when climbing stairs. After having family tell me it was anxiety, and then the cardiologist convinced I developed asthma, it was discovered I was having heart blocks (a lot). Discovered on a heart monitor that I pushed to get since I was pretty sure I didn't have asthma. This went on for over a month. But we know our bodies. On Frida...

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Post symptoms

Hello everyone. I am new to the pacemaker club. I had a dual lead pacemaker done 5 days ago and I think from reading some of the posts I am expecting too much too soon. My original diagnoses was bradycardia with my pulse running in the 40s. I had fatigue going up stairs and some minor shortness of breath. I was expecting everything to be gone after surgery but thats not the case. I know have much more fatigue and shortness of breath and at time my heart pounding in my chest. I go for my first...

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We have successfully published our Survey

Dear member,

Many of you may recall that we ran a survey between June 2021 and December 2021 on post operative pain following a cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED).  I am delighted to tell you that we have managed to get our survey published in The British Journal of Cardiology (The BJC) and I attach a link to the published article below.  The BJC is a unique peer-reviewed publication linking primary and secondary care. It provides an important bridge for ho...

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Pain during surgery

So I went through the club initiation rites yesterday and got my membership card.  Biotronik dual-lead PM up and running.  Had read about the procedure and got a brief explantion from the doctor but was totally unprepared for how painful it was.  They said I'd have a light sedative and local anesthesia, but I thought I'd be more out of it and feel only tugging and pressure.  Felt the injection of the anesthesia obviously, then I don't think I felt the inci...

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My Friend

Good Morning Group, I'm now in my 15th day of recovery and I'm doing fine. Incision site is healing nicely and I'm just waiting for my 1 month follow up with the heart doc so I can get back to doing the things I do on the farm. 

This post however is slightly off the path and is about a friend of mine, he's 86, small frail body style, heavy smoker and has been self isolated since COVID hit. When I informed him of my new PM he told m...

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Left Bundle Branch Area Pacing

After nearly 3 years with permanent afib and the clinicians decision not to atempt to restore sinus rhythm due to age (81) and heart damage due to MI in 2006 I have not been happy having to live with much reduced exertion tolerance and no exercise tolerance. I have been a life long runner and other sports, plus 25 years Army service where exercise was mandatory not optional, so inactivity does not sit well with me. In April it was decided to upgrade my dual chamber pm to biventricular bu...

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Newbie

Well, as you can see I'm new to the group. Today I'm in recovery day 4, and compared to some postings I've read from this forum I would consider myself not unlike most in symtoms with rough nights and sleeping in easy chair, slight redness at incision site, soreness in and around the new PM.

My history with heart attacks started around 15-20 years ago (I'm 76), when after and attack I had a stint inserted and was prescribed Simvastatin, Metoprolol and 81mg asprin along w...

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Thank you!

Many thanks to all of you who took the time to respond to my post; hearing that some of you had very similar experiences normalized my first week journey into Pacerland. To clarify, my pain has been manageable with some help. I was expecting "soreness for a day or two" and not the kind of pain that needed a couple of nights of Oxy, a fair amount of tylenol, lots of ice packs, a supportive bra, and lots of pillows. In all, not really awful, but a good bit more than "some sorenes...

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Newbie - What to Expect

Hello to my new PM community! 54yo female, no family history of heart issues. Went for a treadmill test last Thursday to investigate shortness of breath and fatigue. Within a half hour I was wheeled to the ER, then admitted due to bradys down in the 30s; full AV block. A week later and I've just been released with a new Boston Scientfc PM. 24 hours later I'm home. I feel tired and lightheaded at times; all sorts of flip flop feelings in my chest. Hardly got any sle...

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Post-op pain

Hello New Friends....

I just got my Medtronic PM on Monday....discharged on Tuesday before the surgical pain really kicked in. Lots of swelling and bruising and muscle pain (pectoral) and breast swelling. Big surprise as all I heard was how "easy" the implantation was. Better today, but still can't sleep in my bed. Anybody else have this experience? I have to say that I didn't get much in the way of follow-up or what to expect regarding recovering from the procedure it...

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Newby

Hi I've been having syncope and dizzy spells for 6 years. Had lots of neurological and cardiac tests. I had a left bundle branch block but cardiology said it wouldn't cause my blackouts. May this year I had an Medtronic implantable loop recorder fitted. Friday 1July I had another blackout. I contacted 111 who said the hospital should pick it up and as I wasn't injured didn't need to attend hospital. I contacted the hospital on the Monday to tell them what had happened and coul...

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Pace and Ablate

I had my AV node ablation yesterday and wanted to say thanks for the support on here about both the pacemaker insertion and the ablation.

The procedure went without hitch. It took less than a minute to ablate the node and then there was a wait while they do the pacemaker tests and make sure they've got all the cells ablated. I didn't feel a thing. Not much sedation needed apparently for such a short procedure. I've not had any bleeding in my groin. Back to the ward within a...

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Well, I’m in the Club Now

Hello everyone,

Today, I officially joined the club.

I am 33 and recently (in February 2022) started experiencing syncope episodes with asystole. I would wake up at night feeling hot and nauseous, and then would pass out. Didn't matter if I was standing, sitting, or lying down.

The docs diagnosed vasovagal syncope and implanted a loop recorder. We caught a 7-second pause once when the EMTs had me hooked up to ECG as I passed out. Then a couple months later the loop recor...

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You know you're wired when...

Your ICD has a better memory than you.

Member Quotes

It is just over 10 years since a dual lead device was implanted for complete heart block. It has worked perfectly and I have traveled well near two million miles internationally since then.