Need help choosing

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum (forums in general) and I need help. My Doctor has suggested the three companies below:

- St. Jude
- Medtronic
- Boston Scientific

I have been researching best I can, but I am unsure. From what I gather it seems that there is not a wrong choice. I have another appointment on Nov. 19th with a new Doctor and I am going to ask for models of each to research more in-depth. Would you suggest any websites, maybe the hospital, or another place/person to gather more information? Any suggestions or information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
Maryanne

9 Comments

Choose the human , then the machine

by oldearthworm - 2015-11-04 02:11:45

Easier said than done, the top PMs, IMO, seem to be about equal, but the surgeons and doctors .. this is so difficult, actually impossible when one is in the ER wondering how he is going to leave ..
Also, this did not escape me .. as usual ..the very best of advice from TracyE
I probably did "overpan" the Holy Spirit Camp Hill hospital .. they generally do try and they did save my life with the St Judes PM .
So, I'd take the reviews with a grain of salt or two ..
Perfection exists only in Heaven ..

choices

by Tracey_E - 2015-11-04 02:11:53

Your doctor should make a recommendation, not leave it up to you. He knows them best, he knows your history best, and he has the relationships with the companies. All are good, you can't go wrong, but there are some reasons one may be better for you over another.

If you will be using rate response, you want one that senses breathing as well as motion.

You might want one that is MRI compatible, however there are some downsides to those so, again, your doctor knows this best.

Talk to the dr who will be seeing you for follow up, not the surgeon (sometimes it's the same person but not always). The rep from the company may be the person you see for follow up in the drs office, so if your dr has a great relationship with Medtronic and there are very few Boston reps in your area, then Medtronic might be a better choice for you. I have had the same amazing SJM rep for 20+ years. There is a Medtronic that has a feature that may have been useful for me so my dr left it up to me if I wanted to switch when I had my last replacement. I chose to keep my rep, imo the one little feature wasn't worth starting over with a new rep. I've personally had really terrific experience with SJM. I don't think the device does anything the other brands won't do, but the reps have gone above and beyond to make sure I feel great and can do whatever I want.

No two of us are alike and they are not one sizes fits all, so push your dr for a recommendation. Maybe leave the final choice of two up to you, but asking you to do the research from all that is out there on the market is crazy. He has the medical degree and experience, you just have the internet where you'll find companies telling you how great their product is, medical papers that are hard to understand, and places like this full of amateurs. We may have a lot of experience, but all we can offer is a patient's perspective.

Gratitude

by MIngram - 2015-11-04 03:11:06

Thank you for taking the time to respond. Your message was clarifying and powerful. Thank you again.

FWIW

by Busdriver - 2015-11-04 05:11:32

I am approaching my one year anniversary with my Saint Jude PM2240. At 56 years of age, I really feel like an 18 year old again. Last year at this time, I was unable to walk 50 feet without feeling like I was going to pass out. Today, and for that last few weeks, I walked over 2 miles in less than 40 minutes. My experience with my doctor and my St Jude pacemaker has been absolutely wonderful. Both saved my life. I am doing my best not to take anything for granted, and not squander the opportunity I have been given. Whatever you choose, I wish you the best!

Choice of pacemaker

by Andyfoo - 2015-11-04 12:11:48

Personally I am also new to this forum & had my pacemake implanted on 18th August and that's how I have arrived at this forum. Going through what members had experienced after their implant, some good and some disappointingly bad prompted me to mention that research must be done on the Doctor involved in the implant. If you had chosen a good & experienced doctor, everything would be a breeze as in my case. I had no complaints on the surgery nor after effects or wrong heartbeats, etc. It has been smooth going all the way till now compared to some members in this forum who unfortunately had some very bad experience with their implants. Good luck to you.

Andy

It's really hard

by Theknotguy - 2015-11-05 02:11:21

The EP's are the brainy type of heart doctors. You have to enjoy all the mass of data, the graphs, the squiggly lines, and stuff that goes along with that. As others have suggested it's best to go along with their recommendations. They can't always tell you exactly why one model over another but they have their reasons.

If you look over the forum the biggest factors are your lifestyle. If you're more active, getting a PM that will support that activity is a help. I'm moderately active and have a PM that will support that.

In this area the three most popular are St.Jude, Boston Scientific, and Medtronic.

I have a Medtronic with an accelerometer. For the most part it is very helpful. You will also read posts by other members who say the accelerometer is a detriment. Especially if you do biking. Being held in a non-moving position while being on a bike prevents the accelerometer from kicking up the heart rate. Where I'm active and moving, it works fine for me.

I'm surprised to read a negative response about Medtronic, I've had nothing but good help from them.

The only suggestion I can make Is to determine what kind of life style you have and ask what your EP would do along those lines. I do a lot of walking, some lifting and am generally active several days a week. Consequently the Medtronic with the accelerometer works best for me. Just got lucky because I had been in a coma for four days when I got mine. Don't know if the EP asked questions about my life style or made a determination based upon the clothes I was wearing when they brought me in in the ambulance. Maybe he made a SWAG. (Scientific Wild Ass Guess) Probably will never know.

One other thing, my Medtronic has a software program that will mitigate afib sessions. It has worked well over the two years I've had it. Consequently I'd be reluctant to go with any other model that didn't have that feature.

Unless you are doing something extreme, probably the St.Jude, Boston Scientific, or Medtronic will work equally well.

I think everyone becomes accustomed to their model of PM and, for the most part, are reluctant to change unless there is a good reason.

I was fortunate, I was unconscious when I got my PM and didn't have to go through the angst of waiting to get one. So I never had the same opportunity to make a choice as you.

People who are new to heart problems sometimes like to keep control. What a lot of us learn is that with heart problems, you sometimes just go along for the ride. You probably would like to make a final decision about your PM and feel you have that control but ultimately you'll just have to go along with your EP and trust his decision. Hard to do.

I hope everything goes well for you.

St Jude Medical PM

by knb123 - 2015-11-07 08:11:37

Hi there - I have a dual-lead PM made by St Jude Medical. Since my implant was performed emergently (full heart block diagnosis in the ER, pulse 37), I had no time to do research. I did ask the resident which brand the EP likes to implant, and she told me, "Either Boston Scientific or St Jude Medical." I guess it depends on how he feels at the time...or, perhaps, some factors related to the patient on the table.

In any case, my implant went very smoothly and I have had a pretty typical recuperation experience. My device (which I have named Pacey) operates 100 percent of the time. I also have a Merlin home monitor (I suspect you'll receive one of those, too, regardless of the PM your EP implants) and even though I frequently don't sleep all night in my bed, apparently the monitoring people have seen no red flags and I've felt fine.

My best advice to you would be to leave the choice to your EP with the assumption that he/she would know best which one to select for your unique situation.

Good luck and let us know how you fare.

Doc's Choice

by taylorii - 2015-11-08 06:11:41

I am coming up on my first year with a St Jude ICD. Have no problems as of this writing, but will assure you that your Cardo should make this choice. The Cardo practice I use have a specialist (a electrician if you will) and he made the choice for my Cardo & me based on my situation. Not all are the same.

Hope this helps...

And here I am...

by mtaylor - 2016-01-22 08:01:56

I agree with the "doctor's choice" to a point, but there are some things I would want a say in and this is one of them. That said, I am a weird case like that. I have a Medtronic device at the moment, but when it's time to replace it I have my eye on a St. Jude that is a bit smaller and is rated to 200 feet underwater.

But in most cases you should listen to your doctor.

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