Pacemaker protruding

Hi, My pacemaker (one month old lies fairly flat except at the top it i protruding more than the rest. I only bring it up because I feel like ---- a lot of the time. Any experience with this?

2 Comments

Protrusion of PM

by Theknotguy - 2014-12-22 05:12:18

Previous posts on this forum indicate the PM pocket is not as tight for some people as others. Some have said it feels like it is going to fall out of the pocket when they lean over. Others have complained about the pocket being so tight they can hardly move. I'm somewhere in between. I'll let the loose pocket people chime in about their experiences and suggestions for improvement.

Depending upon the amount of hydration my body has, temperature, all sorts of things, my PM will either almost disappear or stick out. It just depends. So some mornings it will look like it's almost on top of the PM pocket, other days you can't see it at all. My wife has commented about seeing and not seeing it. I've told her I'm OK. Oh, and I'm past a year with my PM and it's still doing the hide-and-seek routine. Doesn't bother me as I know it's working - the most important thing. Based upon your description and body type it appears the PM is lying partially in a hard spot and also in a loose spot. So while part of it appears to stick up higher, it probably won't be a problem. If you talk to your EP about it, he'll probably just shrug it off. Attitude is, "It's working isn't it?" No concerns for cosmetics.

Fortunately for everyone they give the leads going into the PM some slack so they aren't bothered by how the PM looks on the outside. No chance of loose or damaged leads just from appearances.

Sounds like everything else is going OK for you - hope so - and I'm glad for you.

Pacemaker protrusion.

by Selwyn - 2014-12-23 12:12:55

So much depends on body type and positioning of the PM. It may be positioned a little on the high side, as the chest wall is oval the greater curve is at the top and this may accentuate the outline of the PM which is after all not curved on the larger surfaces.

If you crouch down, the upper edge of the PM become more prominent and may even ( as in my case) hit your collar bone. This just needs a little thought before adopting such a position.

The more fat you have under your skin the less prominent will be the outline of your PM. For me you can see both the PM and the leads! Rarely, the PM may rub at the skin and cause problems, however considering the prominence of my PM and the amount of swimming and other upper body exercise I do, it must be quite rare.

If the PM placement is uncomfortable this should be discussed with your cardiologists as you can have readjustments. Do not start to push the PM around yourself as this may cause Twiddler's syndrome.

You know you're wired when...

Your ICD has a better memory than you.

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