That didn’t take long ....advice ?

MRI?

by AgentX86 - 2020-01-13 23:06:03

I had one in November.  It was a mess getting all the paperwork together (three hospitals and four doctors involved) but the actual MRI went very smoothly. The PM manufacturer's card was worthless.  My cardiologist had to certify that the PM and leads were MRI compliant (liability on hime, even though he wasn't the one who implanted it.

I was really surprised.  None of the techs were one bit worried about my PM.  They had a PM tech download my PM into his "laptop" and put my PM into "safe" mode, then when it was over, he just did the opposite.  Everything included, it was less than an hour.  It was expen$ive, though.

What really surprised me was that they didn't care about metal in the room.  I left all my change, phone, and everything I normally carry with me on the counter about 6' from the MRI system.  They didn't even have me take my belt off.  The MRI was on my head (no, they didn't find anything ;-) so I was only in the MRI machine from my head to my chest, so the belt was still outside but still...  The actual MRI was really easy.  The paperwork was a PITA.

Thank you

by Pacer2019 - 2020-01-14 01:01:50

So even though in safe mode you were still being paced without interruption ?

my MRI is on my foot so maybe they don't even need to put my chest area or upper body in the machine ? 
 

so your head was found to be empty ? Seems like a lot of time and money to determine what those close to your could have spoken to with great authority !!!

MRI

by Gemita - 2020-01-14 07:08:14

Hello Pacer2019, 

yes hubby (81) had an MRI because of pain, left flank.  His MRI focussed on his thoracic spine since they didnt think it was coming from his kidney.  Just like AgentX86, what a business to get clearance for the imaging because of his PM.  His consultant at his last follow up told us quite honestly that the difficulty was in finding someone knowledgeable who knew what was required.

The procedure went well and the result was that a nerve block for the pain was eventually given, with some degree of success, although not completely resolved.

The MRI preparation went as follows:  hubby first had to have a chest X-ray to confirm position of the PM/leads, then his PM was reprogrammed (put in safe mode) in readiness for MRI.  He was monitored during the MRI procedure by cardiac technicians to make sure that nothing untoward occurred.  After some 20 mins he was brought back to the waiting area, had position of his device/leads checked again (with another chest X-ray) and device reset back to original settings.  No problems afterwards.

Unlike AgentX86, hubby is not PM dependent although suffers from quite severe bradycardia and arrhythmias.  

As others have commented on in the past, it is important that both leads and device are MRI safe.  Most of them are today, but we have to be prepared.  Good luck

MRI?

by AgentX86 - 2020-01-14 09:30:20

Sure, "safe mode" just sets a fixed pace and all sensing, rate response, and any other "decisions" the software has to make are disabled. If there is an upset by the magnetic field, the pacemaker doesn't do anything dangerous (it doesn't do anything but pace at a constant rate). Yeah, it has to pace, unless I could hold my breath for 30 minutes.  ;-)

I could easily be wrong but the drawer you ride into the machine on only has one "head" end. You my he to go completely inside. They may have a different machine for the extremities.

My wife told them that the MRI was a waste of time -that it wouldn't show anything. Then again she one said that I had no heart. It took a CABG to prove otherwise.  ;-)

mri

by Tracey_E - 2020-01-14 10:24:17

You can have one, yes. But you can't just go to the doc in a box place and have it like everyone else does. There are a lot more hoops to jump through and your doctors will need to coordinate. My opinion? Ask for CT or xray and see how it goes. Go for the easy way first and see if it heals on its own. If you still have problems, then look into mri later. I've had broken bones in my foot. I've had plantar fasciitis, heel spurs, a crushed metatarsal that didn't heal correctly, all with no mri. 

I don't think it matters what part of the body goes in the machine. They don't want us in the room without precautions. That's what I was told years ago, so that may have changed. 

Thank you

by Pacer2019 - 2020-01-14 11:41:45

While I'm sure it can be done safely I am weighing the benefit ....partially based on possible risk but also $.

here is more than you probably want to know ....

After an activity I was having heal pain to the extent i couldn't put weight on it ....went to a clinic ...X-ray .... they said chipped bone in my foot , an old healed one , and a bone spur. 

Boot on my foot ...crutches...go see an ortho. 
 

few days later I was having INTENSE shooting nerve pain in my foot ...like worst pain I've ever felt. 
 

I survived until ortho appointment ..... he scoffed at the clinic diagnosis ... felt could be an upstream nerve issue manifesting in my foot ...possible planter issue also possible. 

(for years I have had some numbness in my foot from what was once a compressed L4,L5 but never nerve pain.)

they put me on prednisone and nueronton ...suggested an MRI to figure out cause. 
 

probabky should go through with the MRI I guess..... or could get serious about the mobility WOD ! As Starrett says ....work upstream and get my body organized - then see what happens.

Two weeks into the new year ...I really don't want to hit my deductible 

Two weeks into the new year.

by AgentX86 - 2020-01-14 15:29:27

In 2018 I hit my out-of-pocket maximum on January 8th and that was before several hospitalizations,  a few ER visits, and a pacemaker.  The good news was that after, all my co-pays and meds were free for the year.

That I do is set up an FSA with the insurance maximum, so it's always paid with pre-tax money.

I would hope

by dwelch - 2020-01-18 15:28:34

I have seen too much lack of communication between offices.  We want you to get a stress test, and you show up to the stress test and only then do they realize oh you have a pacemaker this isnt going to work there was no reason for you to bring sweats and athletic shoes.  Instead here is an injection and a coupon for a free breakfast at the cafeteria.

You need to be your own advocate, if you listen to Tracey_E as you should the one thing we dont need to do anymore is bring up pre-mediation at the dentist.  But any chance of MRI should be handled with care, just because your device might claim to be mri safe, doesnt mean they have a new enough machine where you are going, with weaker fields.  if they dont have three/four doctors involved and paperwork hoops, dont get in nor anywhere near the machine, find a new doc or mri center.

Now in maybe another 20 or 30 years, wait Tracy_E and I with our 25 year old or 32 year old leads will still be around I hope, so maybe in 50-75 years, like the dentist thing which was more of bad science than the reality of mri and pacers, we wont have to be bothered with paperwork and extra meetings among doctors and vendors.  for now if they have not spent a long time (relative to the pain your are in in the E.R or wherever) jumping through doctors, vendors, paperwork, I would stay out of the machine.   CT or xray is just fine in the mean time.  maybe find (age discrimination about to happen) an old/gray doc who predates MRI machines and can actually do work without them, rather than the ones that cant operate only with xray/ct.

They said ...

by Pacer2019 - 2020-01-18 16:16:45

They would call me last Monday to schedule ... haven't heard a word - in the mean time I am self treating and thinking I will pass on the MRI - doing something mobility work and staying off the court a few weeks