Has anyone had mri safe PM?

Hi,
I am new here and asking this for my husband (43 yrs) who may be getting a PM soon. I just like to get info on the pros and cons of PM in general and what your experience has been with PM in general. We are just new to the whole PM topic and now trying to get as much information as possible to make an informed decision. He is very active and moderately athletic and doctor suggested mri safe in case he needs to get mri in future because of his active lifestyle. He has been diagnosed with bradycardia and heart rate dips down to low 30's.
Thanks in advance for your time.
rspa

6 Comments

ditto

by GillyC - 2013-11-04 05:11:26

Hi there .. I have MRI safe leads and a PM for bradycardia - my heart rate also dips that low (well not now) I had no idea just how limiting my bradycardia was until I got my PM - I think your husband will find a new lease of life esp if he's a little athletic. If you have a choice go for the most advance model/leads ... who knows what the future may bring and I am a little reassured that should I need an MRI - I can have one

good health to you and yours rspa x

Cheap life insurance

by fishfighter - 2013-11-04 05:11:41

That is what a PM is to all of us here. Well, not cheap, but does help keep the ticker ticking.

The down side of having a pm? After the doc's get it adjusted and after about 6 months, I forgot all about having it most of the time.

One question.

What kind of work your hubby does? Some fields of work that people do can not return to that field once getting a PM.

engineer

by rspa - 2013-11-04 08:11:39

Thanks fishfighter and GillyC for your replies.

He is a Mech. engineer. so sits in front of the computer most of the time. When he is not physically active is when his HR drops and so sitting all day doesn't help.
If you don't mind me asking what brand of pm did you get? Our surgeon does medtronics brand. Is there one brand better than other? has there been recalls? or problems?
thanks

Thanks Donr and KAG

by rspa - 2013-11-05 04:11:00

Thank you so much for your response. It was very helpful. Yes engineering minds are curious. So we were trying to get the specs on the PM. Our surgeon suggested MRI safe device also.
I will go and read more in the newbee section to get more information.
rspa

Bradycardia is EASY fix...

by donr - 2013-11-05 08:11:00

...IF that is all he has & there is not an underlying issue unknown to you or the Cardio.

PM's are superb at compensating for a slow Heart Rate (HR). If your husband has never had an operation before, go to the SEARCH button, top right corner of page & search for "Some Tough Love for Newbies" - that will give both of you some perspective on what the procedure is like & perhaps answer some of your questions in advance. It's a rather LOOOOOOONG post, so click on the title to open it up to read it all.

From reading your description of his life, it sounds like the Brady is all that affects him, You say that when he is resting is when his HR drops low & when active, it is more normal. That is a good sign. It means that the electrical node that controls HR, the Sino-Atrial (SA) at least is responsive to increased oxygen demand from the body & increases his HR when needed - although it may not be able to increase it enough.

The PM works on every beat the heart makes & will correct for each one that it determines will be late or even missing. It is a miniature digital computer that monitors the heart continuously & if it "Thinks," based on data it has stored in it, that a heart beat will be late, it sends a pacing signal to make the expected beat come on time.

I have a Medtronic PM - a good brand for the type problems your husband has. Medtronic is probably the biggest mfgr in the world of PM's. A quality product w/minor history of recalls. Go for the MRI capable device - even if not offered, ask for it anyway. That device will be in him for at least 7 yrs, perhaps 10; you never know what the future brings in terms of needing an MRI.

I'm also an engineer - EE. There are a couple more of us in here, just lurking to find questions we can pounce on to answer.

Don

One of the "lurkers"

by KAG - 2013-11-05 12:11:27

Don covered it well as usual.

I'd add that since your husbands an engineer he probably will want to learn about his device. I'm a retired engineer and got a copy of the clinician manual for my Medtronics MRI capable PM model. Haven't had an MRI yet but it's good to know the capablility is there if I need it. You can go on-line and get an electronic copy for his model and they also will send you a hardcopy if you request it.

Also once it's installed and they do PM checks he should get a copy of the interrogation report. It has all the modes and settings of his device. They tend to start with settings which are good for most but if you're more active you may need to have some tweaks made. Very easy for the PM tech to make adjustments if needed. I had SOB when I first got mine and was exerting more. They upped my UTR and I've been fine since then.

As Don said this is a great site to get help with any questions you might have.

Kathy

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