Muscle twitching in left arm

Twitching sensation

by Gemita - 2020-12-27 07:47:37

Hello KI4BIY,

Yes all sorts of strange sensations can be felt post pacemaker implant and this may be perfectly normal for most of us following the procedure.  

I see your implant was 3 weeks ago and I would think things are still settling down for you.  My doctors told me these sensations may be due to trauma during the implant, since they have to work near nerves, blood vessels, muscle tissue as they enter veins to place pacemaker leads.  You can imagine how delicate this task could get and how easily they could traumatise sensitive tissue.  As nerves recover, they may well start to send out sensations of this nature.  I experienced very sharp sensations left upper chest, going into left upper arm and armpit.  I also experienced pressure type pain across my collarbone going into my left shoulder, but all of this for me was part of the normal healing process of veins, blood vessels, nerves and tissue.

What is normal and what is not?  At 3 weeks I would say it is probably normal what you are feeling, but if the twitching continues or increases or you notice any other symptoms, then it will do no harm to ask your doctors to carry out some checks.  When in doubt, I always ask for peace of mind.  It may be that you are feeling the pacing from the leads and this is causing twitching in the upper arm.  Maybe a pacemaker adjustment at your first check up might help, or they might need to check how well your leads are performing and perhaps adjust the voltage.  There are many possibilities, but hopefully your twitching should settle soon without any intervention.  Just keep an eye on your wound to make sure it is healing nicely (no major swelling, oozing, redness around the device area).

Hope otherwise you are feeling much better with your pacemaker?

Post implant

by Theknotguy - 2020-12-27 15:52:09

Post implant there are a lot of sensations and reactions by the body and that includes muscle twitching.  They eventually go away.  It just takes time.  Mostly they are caused by the trauma your body received from the implant procedure and not from the pacemaker actions.  

There used to be a video of the implant procedure on YouTube.  I was glad I was unconscious and didn't know about it before I got my pacemaker.  After watching it, I was amazed I didn't hurt more.  The doctors know your are unconscious and are intent upon getting the pacemaker in place as fast as possible and aren't worried about how you are going to feel post implant.  

I had a lot of trauma before getting my pacemaker.  I had CPR and they broke ribs and collapsed a lung.  Consequently my healing took a lot longer than most so I had a lot of "ghost" sensations and things that caused pain took a long time to resolve.  It was nine months before I could go back to some regular activities. I volunteer at a charity wood shop making furniture.  At nine months I went back to working in the wood shop.  I'd be OK during the time I was working - but because of the broken ribs I could only work about four hours at a time.  I was OK while I was working but the next day it would feel like someone had wrapped my pacemaker in sandpaper and scrubbed it around in the pocket.  So the answer is yes you can have post implant ghost feelings and they can go on for a while.  

Some people also report sharp pains in the implant area for about six to nine months out. Others report "ant bite" feelings too.  It just depends upon how your body heals and what kind of sensations it will make you'll feel.  

I hope everything else is going well for your with your pacemaker and you are otherwise getting along fine.  
 

Twitching

by AgentX86 - 2020-12-27 18:48:59

This is perfectly normal.  All sorts of nerves have been irritated or even cut.  It may take some time for these to be regenerated.  All sort of sensations and other issues are possible until everything settles dowb.  This will go away soon.

Normal, do not worry

by jds66 - 2020-12-27 19:01:22

Just had my second pacer installed just 3 weeks ago. And, even though I only had my arm in a sling for say, sleeping for a few nights, I did not keep it in the sling during the day. 

Sleeping on the left side I felt some weird tingling, but as said well above by others, this is normal. Now, most of that tingling is gone, I am even sleeping with out the sling and lifting the arm to prevent shoulder lock, probably more than I should, but with my experience of the first pacer nine years ago, enough that I know what I can and cannot do to hurt me. 

I am a fan of getting blood flow going to the injured area. I believe some docs have people immobloized and in slings for way too long, which hinders their healing. Think about now, these days, after surgery, they  have people up and walking the next day. I think we with pacers need to take the same apporach, with caution.

Get your arm gently moving again, the blood flow will help you and all this will be a thing of the past soon enough. Your muscle twitching has zero to do with the pacer and ALL to do with your lack of using your arm. 

PS, however, be careful with lifting too much weight, etc, I do believe that is more likely to cause a lead being pulled out issue than some non resistance moving of the arms that is natural.