Medtronic Warning Sounds

If you have a Medtronic Device, I recommend reading this board and listening to the warning sounds posted here:

http://www.icdsupportgroup.org/board/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=5094

I have a Medtronic ICD, which made a beeping sound one day, and I thought it was the neighbors alarm clock, until I realized it was coming from my chest. It was alerting me of a lead impedance issue on my shocking lead (Sprint Quattro). I called my dr and left a message instead of getting a ride straight to the hospital (bad decision). 45 mins later, my lead fractured enough that I received inappropriate shocks. I think it is important for patients to be educated on their device's alarms, and I want to thank ICD Support Group for posting this. Also, I recommend that patients request prescription magnets from their doctors (the only way to suspend inappropriate shocking without a clinician interrogating their device). I now carry a prescribed ICD magnet with me and feel better prepared for an emergency situation like this.

2 Comments

Please reconsider

by Katelyn - 2012-08-03 07:08:29

It is not a good idea to give up on EPs and interrogations. If you do not like your DR and his office, then find another one, and keep looking until you are happy - but do not go without an EP or regular interrogations, it is plain stupid and could be a death sentence....

The magnet is only for emergency situations, where you are receiving inappropriate shocks due to a lead failure and need to suspend the shocking until you can get to a hospital. Across all ICD manufacturers right now, the lead failure rate after 5 years is 4%, and out of those failures, 75% of them result in inappropriate shocks. So the chances of it happening to you are slim, but it does happen to people (like it did to me), and when you are in that situation, you want to be prepared and knowledgeable about what your emergency plan will be.

Good luck, I hope you find an EP that you like more and can take control over your device management.

Correction

by Katelyn - 2012-08-07 12:08:55

It is a 4.6% failure rate of leads within the industry over 10 years, with 76% of failures leading to inappropriate shocks.

Source

http://www.medtronic.com/for-healthcare-professionals/products-therapies/cardiac-rhythm/therapies/unique-features/lead-integrity-alert/index.htm

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