chest pain ,

I been to 3 diff e.r rooms total of 5 times. having bad chestpain. i also feel tired n really think somthing is wronh. I had ekg"s ct scans,x rays, blood test etc. the pain has been here for a month. could the pacermaker move or the leads moved? I got it put in when I was 15 im now 19. the pain feels like somone is pullinv my chest with a kife. also had e.r test pacemaker. everything looks fine. what.could this be. the e.r tinks im nuts cause I keep going bk. would xrays etc show if leads or pacer moved ? could that even happen after having it from 01/31/08 please someone help.

7 Comments

ty dave

by andrewpacemaker1 - 2012-08-24 01:08:54

what test did they do to find out the lead moved. how how did u have the pacer b4 the lead moved? ty

Cat scan

by ILoominatedEKG - 2012-08-24 03:08:35

The doctor ordered a cat scan (with iodine dye) and found the moved lead outside of me heart. Previous xrays showed movement, but it was impossible to tell it had peirced the heart without the dye outlining the heart and pericardial sac.

The doctor is in denial (fear of lawsuit no doubt) but I think he put it in wrong from the start. He had to stick it three times before it stayed. Twice, he had to cut the sutures and re stick it before I got off the table. THe lead kept falling off. I don't know why that happened. I think I pissed off the devil. LOL. I think the last time he gave it a couple extra turns to make sure it stayed and put it through the wall (or at least ready to go through at the least nothing). It hurt from the git go but I didn't take it seriously until the pain hit around level 4-5 three days after implant. Before that, I just figured the pain was the norm for having been cut open and wires jammed in your heart.

Give em hello!

by ILoominatedEKG - 2012-08-24 12:08:46

I've had the same problem since the day it was put in. I finally threatened to remove the damned thing with a box knife and a pair of vise grips before they got serious. When they looked hard enough, they found out that the ventricular lead had punctured my heart. I am now awaiting them to remove the lead and see if it kills me. If so, they have to split me open like gutting a fish before I get brain damage. LOL. That's next thurday. I'll let you know how it goes (if I'm not brain dead).

Chances are good I could have bled out into the pericardial sac and died had I resumed normal activities. They call it tamponade. That's when the sac gets so full of blood the heart just can't beat anymore.

Bottom line: Read them the friggin riot act until they find out what's wrong . You know your own body. Don't buy their bullshit if you KNOW something is wrong. A lot of doctors get a god complex and have to be jerked out of it.. Be as assertive (or even obnoxious) as you have to be. It's YOUR life!!!

Good luck - Dave

Hey. I'm no expert but....

by ILoominatedEKG - 2012-08-25 03:08:59

My PM is fairly new. The doc was having a hard time geting the lead to stick and on teh third try, I think he screwed it in a little too far. Of course, he would be a idiot ot admit that so he's saying it was all my fault.

The pain sounds familiar (sometimes like somebody stabbing me in the chest with an ice pick). But from everything I have been reading, the leads tend not to move after they have become well attached. That suposedely occurs within the first month. So I am inclined to think yours would not have moved unless you like fell over a cliff or something. It's possible, but highly unlikely.

The PM doesn't malfunction per se when that happens. It just might not collect the right data or properly pace your heart. My PM says it's pacing 80% of the time (unlikely since they only put it in because I passed out once). But I think it is looking for impulses from and pacing my diaphragm (I can watch it beat with my heart). SO if you really NEED pacing, pain could certainly come from it not doing so if the lead isn't where it's supposed to be.

Whatever happens, keep cool but be assertive. Freaking out never helps anything. But neither does keeping your mouth shut when there's really something wrong. Try to be realistic about the level of your pain onesy twosy out of ten - prolly no big deal. Five -sixish - raise hell.

Best wishes. Keep in touch.

Dave

ty

by andrewpacemaker1 - 2012-08-25 05:08:45

I had pacer for 4 years, do u think after 4 years this could happen ? does the pacer melfection whwn that happens to people dave. I hope everything works out for u man. ur 1st post the way u word stuff made me crack up lol. how old is the pacer u have?

ty

by andrewpacemaker1 - 2012-08-29 05:08:05

ty ur a big help

See and cardiologist or electropysiologist.

by KattRoll - 2012-09-03 01:09:00

Andrew, your situation needs to be addressed. But not by the ER, they are able to help if there is an obvious solution to your problem as they are not the device specialists. If you have experienced a growth spurt since the device was initially put in in 2008, that might be that the lead wire which is in embedded into your heart tissue is being stressed. In many institutions you would still be considered a pediatric patient being that you were technically a pediatric patient when this was implanted. My advice to you is to return to the facility where this was put in. There they will have chest x-rays for comparison purposes to visualize any changes in the position of the leads. Make sure you are seeing a cardiologist or an electrophysiologist. Those are the people that can help you.

Keep pressing on to find your answer, but the answer is not in the ER. Get your education and advice from professionals that specialize in this area. A pacemaker clinic or physician that practice in this specialty.

Good luck,

Katt

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