Lead Extractions

I am scheduled to have my old ICD leads extracted, due to a low grade infection, in October at the Cleveland Clinic by Dr. Wilkoff. Hopefully they will not have to extract the ICD leads on my functioning unit.

My first ICD was put in in 1995 at St. Luke's Hospital in Houston.. A replacement was put in in 1999 at Massachusetts General Hospital. I got an infection in 2002 and the unit was taken out and most of the wires were cut off at the clavicle at St. Luke's. Now the rest of those wires have to be taken out.

I did tons of research before selecting Dr. Wilkoff at the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Charles Byrd in Fort Lauderdale, Florida also has performed many extractions. It appears to me that there are not many Doctors in the U.S. who perform lots of lead extractions.

Is that what many of you are finding?
Thanks

4 Comments

lead extraction dr.'s

by luckyloo - 2007-10-01 12:10:50

hi there,

there are other dr.'s around that do extractions. the key here is though, to go to a dr. that does MANY of them not just a few. dr. wilkhoff, byrd and love (at ohio state) pioneered the laser extraction procedure. dr. love does even more extractions than cleveland clinic. you will be in great hands with dr. wilkhoff. because it is so risky...beware of them allowing a fellow to "practice" taking your out. have this discussion with dr. w in advance. they'll say to you "this IS a teaching facility" if you don't care ...fine. if you do, ask them if teaching comes first and foremost before a patients wishes. sometimes they forget we are human beings with lives and not slabs of meat.

you'll have to keep us posted...i'm due to have an old lead out soon also.

best of luck to you...
luckyloo

lead extraction

by shrtstuf121 - 2007-11-06 08:11:50

I just want to first wish you all luck with your lead extractions! I have had extractions done twice for recurrent infections and Dr. Charles Byrd has done it both times. He did an excellent job and his staff treats you just like their own family. It can be very frustrating and sometimes down right depressing to have to deal with complications but having a doctor you can trust makes it a little easier. I was very sore after my procedures, however, I thank God every day that the incision was small and that recovery was much shorter that the old fashioned way of doing things. I know there are only a few trained specialists that do this and I feel that most of them take what they can do very seriously. Best of luck and let me know if you have any questions!

shrtstuf121

Very Successful Lead Extraction

by greenhouse92 - 2007-11-09 12:11:23

November 2007

I just returned from having old infected ICD lead wires very successfully removed at the Cleveland Clinic by Dr. Bruce Wilkoff. The lead wires had been implanted, with plenty of scar tissue, for over 12 years. The surgery was very easy on me. It took less time than was planned. Dr. Wilkoff's vast expertise in this type surgery resulted in no interferrence with my current ICD, even though most of my old and new lead wires went through the same vessel. I was back on the treadmill in a few days. I was feeling excellent the day after surgery, chatting and walking the corridor. As a sidebar, this was my first visit to the Cleveland Clinic. It was a 100% positive experience, very personable and comforting. My only mistake was waiting three months after my initial consultation with Dr. Wilkoff to have my lead extraction
surgery. The anxiety built up far too much.

Leads

by Vangie - 2007-11-22 01:11:38

Thank you Greenhouse92 for your encouraging input. I do not face extraction as yet, but it is comforting to know it can be done successfully if needed!

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