Very concerned...

I had my Pacemaker installed last Saturday..  Last night I went tothe emergency room because my left arm andleft hand had swollen up... They done a Cat Scan, drew blood and checked forblood clots.. All checked out normal... My blood pressure and heart rate was good also.... The selling went down and they released me.... This morning I woke up and my hand was swollen again... I called the doctors office who installed the Pacemaker, it's Saturday, they are closed...  so I called the answering service and a doctor called me back... he adviised me tokeep thearm elevated andto come to the doctors office Monday....  My finger tips on the left hand are getting cool...  the right hand is warm...  I have experienced light headedness since the surgery.... Thecool finger tips is telling me circulation.... Circulation can also make me light headed can it not? I have alteady had 3 stents put in about a year and a half ago.... 

3 Comments

Left arm circulation

by CyborgMike - 2021-07-24 21:23:40

After my PM was put in I had lots of left arm pain and poor circulation. The reason for the poor circulation in the left arm is the docs cut one of the major veins coming out of the arm, seal the arm side, and then use the other side to run the PM leads to the heart. Eventually the body figures out how to increase the capacity of the other veins coming out of the left arm, but it can take over a month to get back to near normal circulation. 
 

i don't know what is going on with your arm, as sometimes there are complications, but having pain and poor circulation in your left arm following a new PM can be pretty normal due to the severed veins. 

left arm circulation

by steave1288 - 2021-07-24 22:14:57

Ok that may make a little sense... Has anyone also experienced light headedness?

Light headed

by Persephone - 2021-07-25 10:10:10

Yes, I continued to experience symptoms of SOB after implant and eventually required setting adjustments to feel better.  (my husband tells me I was born dizzy, but that's a different matter :)  Keep a log of your symptoms (such as, were you light headed when climbing stairs, trying to do activities of daily life, seated in a chair, etc) so you can have an informed discussion with your medical team when you return for your first check up.

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