Patient Monitor (Medtronic "My Care Link" ) showing lights in night

light in the night

by new to pace.... - 2022-03-01 07:33:26

I have a Medrontic Carelink monitor which sits on the nitestand by the bed.  The green light circle only comes on when i put a light on.  Also is on during the daylight hours.  Otherwise it is not lite.  Do not know when it is transmitting sometime between midnight and 4pm.

new to pace

Same As New to Pace

by MinimeJer05 - 2022-03-01 10:26:40

Hello,

I have the same monitor and mine behaves exactly like New to Pace's -- it has a green light during the day, but once the lights go out (or it gets dark), the light goes out. It has a sensor built in that should detect surrounding light and it should know to turn off when sleeping (even if you are transmitting data), unless they are requesting a manual transmission, in which case, you press the button and it will light up.

I would consult Medtronic and see if they can reset it or send you a new one?

Best of luck

Jer

Carelink

by Julros - 2022-03-01 10:58:18

I leave mine unplugged in the box, until the day before a scheduled download. The next morning, I unplug it and box it back up. Otherwise, that annoying green light stays on all night.

MyCareLink monitor

by Gemita - 2022-03-01 11:10:13

It sounds to me as though your monitor might be attempting to transmit data to your clinic and possibly failing.  It will repeatedly try to transmit during the night until it succeeds.  Also your clinic may be doing some maintenance jobs nightly and software updates too and the latter can be lengthy - up to an hour - so you will want to place your monitor in a place where it won’t wake you but where it can receive a strong signal while making sure it is within 10 feet of your device.  

I used to get these problems a lot and had to manually transmit data to my clinic when I woke in the morning, since the flashing monitor lights indicated transmissions had failed.  In my experience these monitors can be extremely temperamental and I now have a MyCareLink Smart Patient Reader which I use in combination with my iPhone App to send data to my clinic.  I can use this where and whenever I wish.  I am also in the UK

Have a word with your clinic to check whether they are receiving any downloads or take your monitor into your clinic and get them to check it for any faults, although I note from new to pace and Jer’s comments that the newer monitors should not be lighting up during the night? 

Monitor's light

by TAC - 2022-03-01 12:34:57

I was told by my EP that the home monitor will get the day's information from my PM every night. Only relevant information will be sent to the clinic. That could be the reason why the light in your monitor lights up at night.

Mycarelink box and lightning

by AgentX86 - 2022-03-01 14:15:07

As with many questions here, the answer is "that's normal".  The MyCareLink box is a piece if shite, designed by morons and built in China by volunteers (even slaves are rewarded for their work).  I just took the handset and threw it under the bed until the battery discharged, then left it there.

The phone app is somewhat better, except that it is a battery killer. I sure hope Medtronic designs their pacemakers better than their monitors!  Though maybe not. Mine has been recalled.

monitors

by Tracey_E - 2022-03-01 15:09:00

Mine is wrapped in a towel under my bed. As long as it's within 10 feet of me, it'll work. 

What were they thinking?

by Gotrhythm - 2022-03-03 12:24:35

I had to laugh at the picture of Tracey's device wrapped in a towel under her bed. I would title the picture, "Taming the Wild Monitor."

What are they thinking? They produce a gizmo designed to watch over us while we sleep. Then make sure we can't sleep by equipping it lights that blink and flash in the dark.

I finally got rid of my medical alert button. Who could sleep with that pendant thing on my chest flashing a bright amber light all night long?

I was told the flashing was to assure me that yes it was in contact with a cell tower somewhere. Strangely enough, worry about cell connection had never once kept me awake, but the flashing light did.

Unfortunately, it wasn't much good to me wrapped in a towel under the bed. Nor in the nightstand drawer. And no good at all if left on the bathroom counter. I cancelled the contract.

I know why the manufacturers do it. Some flashing lights are a cheap way to make a piece of plastic look impressive. Some sequins and a few feathers wouldn't have that "scientific" vibe but at least you wouldn't have to see them in the dark.

Theses days my 10-year-old pacemaker monitor has a rather endearlingly antiquated look. Twice a year I must sit beside it for 5 minues while it flashes and beeps, but the rest of the time, it doesn't do anything. I'm okay with that.

My care link monitor

by Aberdeen - 2022-03-03 14:49:44

My care link monitor only lights up when there are lights on. The green light is very bright. Last week I was on a short trip and was away for 3 nights. It didn't seem worried that I wasn't there!😂

Lights

by AgentX86 - 2022-03-03 22:06:31

Just to be clear, I  don't care about lights at night.  There are probably two dozen lights on in our bedroom all night.  The only one that really bothers me is the clock.  The MyCareLink box pi$$ed me off because it would start flashing at night.  Not a regular flash but quite like lightning, which I thought it was at first.  Other LEDs around the room aren't as bright as nightlights (which aren't all that bright) but these (more than one) were bright. From what I could figure without taking it apart, the contacts between the puck and base unit made lousey contact causing it to go berserk. I didn't need the thing regulaly so just chucked the puck under the bed with the dust bunnies (who don't interrupt my sleep).