Comparing Vitalio to CLS

I am a 66 year old male trying to decide between the respiration based Boston Scientific Vitalio PM or the Biotronics CLS Pacer. I have a chronotropic incompetence diagnosis due to sinus node dysfunction. My primary goal in getting a pacemaker is to retrieve the upper 20% of my max heart rate that I lost about a year ago.
I am or I should say was an age group Internationally competitive endurance athlete and have lost the ability to train or compete. Like many of you I also have quality of life issues living with a sick sinus node. But my priority is to select a rate adaptive pacemaker that is most likely to give me Max heart rate back.
Would much appreciate comments on the advantages of a respiration based technology like the Vitalio vs the closed-loop stimulation technology of Biotronics. Thanks much, blessings to all.

3 Comments

CLS vs blended sensor

by golden_snitch - 2016-04-30 06:04:51

Hi!

What was your max. heart rate? CLS can only do 160, not more. Most other rate response sensors can do at least 180, some even up to 220, but CLS has a limit of 160.

I currently have a CLS sensor, have had it since 2014, and I have lots of problems when I run. You cannot get a stable rate response. With each run the heart rate curve looks different. When I did my first half marathon I started with a rate of about 155, and then it continuesly dropped to 120 throughout the race (though all settings maxed out, the rate response should have been very aggressive = fast). Yesterday I did a short run and could not bring my heart rate above 112. A week ago, I started with 155, then it dropped all the way down to around 90, and then went back up to around 140. To be honest, it really sucks!

The head of technical service from Biotronik here plus the CLS developers have been trying to solve problems for almost two years now, but every explanation and solution they come up with, does not work - or it works for a couple of weeks, and then the problems are back. So, I'm really frustrated with CLS at the moment; not in daily life activities, but when I exercise.

We are now going to change one setting again, and then the rate response will most likely be what I had in the beginning with CLS: Heart rate goes up to 160, and just stay there all the time, with no heart rate variation at all. And then every now and then, probably every couple of weeks, there will be a run when the rate suddenly drops to 140. That's the CLS problem I dealt with at first. Then a couple of settings were changed, and I ended up with what I explained above about the heart rate curve never being stable at all. But I think, 160 non-stop and sometimes a drop to 140 is better than what I have now.

I used to have a blended sensor with minute ventilation plus accelerometer (that's what you get in the Boston), and I cannot remember having ever had problems like with CLS. But then at that time my overall health wasn't very good, so I could not exercise that much. Unfortunately, I can no longer have this blended sensor, because I needed to be switched to epicardial pacing leads and these don't work with the minute ventilation sensor. So, I was left with the choice of motion sensor only or CLS, and I picked CLS.

My recommendation: get the blended sensor with minute ventilation plus accelerometer (motion sensor), in combination these two sensors should work well for you.

Best!
Inga

Same issue!

by Jackw - 2016-05-05 01:05:57

I am a 70 year old male in good health. I have SSS and chronotropic incomp. I run and ski. My Biotronik Eluna does not get me above 120 when I run. Supposedly my upper limit is set at 135 and RR is on max. I have had it for 1 year and will go in for my second check in a few weeks so maybe I can get then to change a few parameters. I am going to print this thread and send it to my EP before the visit to see what his thoughts are about changing parameters. I am hoping that if I send it ahead of time he will be able to contact the Biotronik tech ahead of time to look into this issue. Still, before the PM I could not get my rate above about 105 so there is some improvement.

I have a Vitalio...would NOT recommend one

by Chooka - 2017-05-20 04:22:13

I have a Vitalio and have had nothing but trouble with it. From the moment it was implanted the Minute Ventilation system would not work and the manufacturer (Boston Scientific) cannot tell me with any certainty why it doesn't work and I have had to turn the MV off. This has caused significant impact on how I exercise (I cannot use many pieces of gym equipment, and have been advised not to swim with it), and am stuck with this device for another decade (was first implanted in 2014). While BS has said this is rare, I would hate to have this happen to someone else, especially when the exact cause doesn't seem to be known.

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