Battery running low

A friend of mine is due for a new pm in Sept/08. She has been short of breath for some months and has been checked out. Supposedly she is ok. Well, I was wondering if there is a possibility that when your pm battery is reaching the end of it's life, if it can cause any problems, like sob. Could the pm not be functioning as well as it should? These may be dumb questions but I'm willing to risk it. lol......
tia

4 Comments

Low PM Battery

by SMITTY - 2008-05-22 11:05:38

No dumb question are ever asked here.

A weak pacemaker battery will not cause symptoms such as you describe. The battery may get weak, but it will continue to be strong enough to make you heart beat at the prescribed rate. Pacemakers batteries are not like flashlight batteries where the bulb gets dimmer and dimmer. The pacemaker will just keep ticking away.

It is not uncommon for people with pacemakers to be SOB as these people frequently have other heart problems that can cause SOB. Anyone with a pacemaker that is SOB, and they think it may be caused by their PM, I would suggest that they see their doctor, but for quick reassurance about the PM they can check their heart rate. So long as the heart rate is as at least as fast as the low setting on their PM then it is extremely unlikely that PM is at fault.

Below is a rundown on how batteries are checked and what happens

What happens when the battery runs down? The pacemaker battery behaves in a predictable fashion. By following you up regularly we can predict fairly accurately when the pacemaker generator will need replacing. The pacemaker will be functioning perfectly normally throughout this time and we admit you to replace the generator in a planned fashion. Many factors determine how long a battery will last. Currently available generators typically last about 7-10 years under standard conditions. When the generator is replaced the procedure is similar to that of the original pacemaker implant although we aim to use the original leads and simply attach a new generator.

Anyone that is fortunate enough to have one of the newer Medtronic InSync pacemakers the battery should last at least 7 years. The doctor will check it every time he sees you, using the programmer. If the battery gets pretty low, a beeper inside the pacemaker itself starts beeping and it is time to get yourself to the doctor right away.

Smitty

I only found out...

by heckboy - 2008-05-23 01:05:40

... that my PM was low when I became out of breath during my normal warm-up at the gym. The "safe mode" or whatever it's called will only work to a certain level until its replacement. As noted above, it's to preserve battery life.

Low battery symptoms

by ElectricFrank - 2008-05-23 01:05:41

There is a possibility of a low battery causing shortness of breath or other symptoms.According to the Medtronic Technical Manual, "When the pacemaker detects that the battery voltage has dropped below 2.59 volts, the pacemaker sets the Elective Replacement Indicator status and reverts to VVI operation at a rate of 65BPM.
What this means is that at this point all of those settings that have been carefully determined are turned off and the pacemaker reverts to a "dumb" mode to just conserve battery life and maintain basic pacing.
The statement that "Everything is OK" should be interpreted as "You aren't about to pass out or die, but you may not feel too well". At this point it is up to us to insist on replacement now, now after 3 months of misery.
One way to check this out is for the person to take their pulse, do some activity which should result in an increase in activity, and then take the pulse again. If it remains the same it is likely that the pacer is in the low battery mode.

frank

Battery running low

by ladysmom - 2008-05-23 03:05:41

thank you so much for your replies. very interesting reading. i shall tell my friend about this. we learn more on forums and support groups than from our own physicians.

what's interesting is that 1 1/2 years ago, when i had my pm info downloaded, there were 10 to 23 months of battery life left, based on previous history. that seems like quite a wide spread. when i had it checked again last december, it seemed there was still a lot of time left and i am about 90 - 95% dependent. what got me was 'previous history' - my first pm was turned off for my ablation and then it could not be restarted and therefore i got a new one.

again, thanks......

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