Pacemaker protection

Hi all ...

Two weeks ago, I was on a heart event monitor (eCardio) to see if my afib went away after a maze procedure and heart valve replacement (mitral, aortic) in January, 2014. The monitor reported a 7 pause to my cardiologist; he insisted that I go into emergency and so I did. After three days, I very reluctantly I agreed to have a pacemaker (Medronic, MRI safe). I have buyer's remorse.

In four weeks, I am going to Spain to run with the bulls in Pamplona; I have done this for the last 35 years and I am going regardless of reasonableness.

My question is: How do I protect my PM? There seems to be two choices: (1) A tight fitting tshirt with an impact insert designed to reduce the impact of shooting a gun from evoShield, or, (2) a purpose built cup.

Does anyone have experience with either solution? Any other solutions?

8 Comments

Followup: PM protection

by Hairy - 2014-06-02 04:06:16

I failed to identify the seller of the PM protective cup in my last posting; it is: PaceGuard. The cup appears as if it might work. What is not clear as how it is held in place and how robust the location system is.

PM Protection

by Grateful Heart - 2014-06-02 06:06:00


I don't think those shields protect against unreasonableness.

Grateful Heart

Unreasonableness

by Hairy - 2014-06-02 07:06:23

I am also a climber and backcountry winter skier; neither of which is reasonable either. PM protection is an issue for the activities as well.

The bulls actual catch up to you and pass you. It gets rough when this happens; there is a good chance that you will get knocked down.

A lot more people die climbing than do running with the bulls; this week, we had six climbers in the USA die; their bodies have yet to be found.

Ooops

by Grateful Heart - 2014-06-02 09:06:27

I was just commenting on your comment of "I have done this for the last 35 years and I am going regardless of reasonableness".

It seemed you didn't think it was reasonable.

Good luck on your run and all your endeavors. :-)

Grateful Heart

no offense taken

by Hairy - 2014-06-02 10:06:16

Grateful Heart --- I did not take any offense to your comments, I know that they were meant in a friendly way.

If my comments appeared unhappy, I apologize. It is because I am still somewhat prickly about having put in the PM. I became convinced that it was necessary and I am sorry that I became convinced. Whether its implantation is for good or ill, only time will tell.

What I do not want to do is to change my life significantly; hence my search for a way to protect my PM.

While searching for an answer, I found people with PMs playing football, soccer, competing in karate and other forms of martial arts, backpacking, mountain biking, rugby (both youth and adult), high altitude climbing, and other less contact endeavors. Many sports have risks that come with falling or hitting something (like a tree) or being hit by something (a bouncing rock or a karate kick).

The biggest described risk seems to be breaking leads. I think that the chance of breaking a collarbone or a rib might be higher, but I am not sure. In my case, I believe that I could survive for awhile without the PM doing its job. But, I would prefer to avoid direct impact to the PM, hence my asking about ways of protecting it. My immediate concern is Pamplona; but, if all goes well with my rehab, I will be back cross country skiing and ice climbing this coming winter.

Anyhow, I still need PM protection advice; any suggestions anybody?

protection

by Tracey_E - 2014-06-02 10:06:40

The Paceguard shirts are really well made and most people are happy with them. They will not protect you from being trampled, either by people or bulls. Imo, you do not need it for climbing or backcountry skiing. It's more for full contact sports like tackle football and basketball. You are not going to damage the pm, it's titanium. Your skin isn't so tough, it will bruise and hurt like crazy while the pm keeps on pacing.

More important than the odds of messing up the pm are the odds of you not being up to running your best, of tiring too quickly, which makes you more likely to get knocked around. Check out my other posts, you'll see that I'm usually the first one to blow off dr's cautions, to enthusiastically say go for it, to never ever let my heart hold me back. Please take my advice in that context, from someone who isn't afraid to push things - be sure about your ability to run before you decide to be in the thick of things. An elbow to the pm will HURT. BTDT. Falling and reaching out to grab onto something with your left arm will HURT. BTDT, too. By winter you should be able to ski til your heart's content, by the end of summer you should be back to climbing, but for now you might want to respect your body enough to give it some time to recover. It's been through a lot this year. YMMV, of course.

risks

by Tracey_E - 2014-06-03 08:06:37

As far as I know, the risks of breaking a collarbone or rib are not higher. At least, I've never heard of it.

If your leads/pm are directly under the collarbone, pressure on the collarbone (such as weight lifting) can pinch the leads which over time can damage them.

There are a few reports of leads in the chest damaged from repetitive motion such as rowing, as well as heavy weight lifting, pull ups, so some people are told not to do those things. By repetitive, I mean daily training, not someone who occasionally gets on a rower or goes in a kayak. Most (not all) drs agree anything is moderation is ok.

The shirt won't really protect you from any of that. The most common thing to happen is not damage to the pm, it's damage to us. That's what the shirt is for.

There used to be a video on Heartbeat International's website of a boy in a third world country who was shot in the chest. His pm stopped the bullet and saved his life. The pm was not damaged. Leads aren't as tough as that, but they are soft, flexible, well insulated and put in with slack so they are intended to move with us. It's possible for our actions to break one, but it's unlikely. After the first year, it takes a special laser procedure to get them out.

scar tissue is the issue

by Gotrhythm - 2014-06-05 04:06:12

A PM protector will have little effect on protecting the leads.

What protects and keeps the leads in place is scar tissue. Scar tissue is actually far stronger than the ordinary tissue surrounding it--as if the body is saying "this area has had trauma before in this place so as I heal it, I should make cutting or tearing it a little harder to do."

Developing scar tissue takes a while. The surface of the skin might look closed and healed over, but on the inside, healing (and scar formation) is still taking place for six or more weeks.

I don't know the date of the bull run, but it sounds like you might be contemplating doing it before you are completely healed.

But in the end, it's all about quality of life. If for you, running with the bulls means life, real alive-feeling life, do it. And don't worry about trying to protect the PM. Just take your chances like you always do.



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