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New to this

Hello I just had a defibulator installed 5 days ago and am still kinda scared of it. From all of the experiance that you guys have maybe you can tell me what to expect, what i should watch out for, what should I do or not do. Anything will be of help
Thanks

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BIVENTRICULAR CARDIAC PACING

Hi Folks,

I'm new one here and am looking for some information.

My mum, now 71, was diagnosed with Stage One heart failure in June 2007. Inside of 12 months, she had progressed to stage 4 heart failure. The consultants were mystified until she was referred to a Prof. Frenneaux in Birmingham, UK. He diagnosed Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy and attempted various drug treatments that failed on all counts.

Knowing he was part of a research team that was looking at bive...

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Garmin Heart Monitor Interference

Any one had problems using Garmin Heart Monitor.
I am a Marathon Runner and had a PM implant last week. Today I used my Garmin Forerunner 305 Heart Monitor for the first time since the implant. The readings recording are erratic and often intermittent. I had used it often pre-op without a problem and confirmed it is still working ok when my wife used it.

My PM is a Medtronic Kappa 703 dual chamber device.

Can any one recommend a HRM that will work ok with this PM?

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Keep on truckin'

I'm hardly ever this way
But I just can't think of anything funny to say
The day light is fading faster
and I still haven't been able to master
getting everything done in one day.
I miss Cabg Patch
I wish he would come back
but understand his reasons,
but laughter is what we lack.
I just keep on pluggin',
my shoulders keep on shruggin'
with the daily grind
trying to keep a peace of mind, I guess.
And then, there's still this hunk...

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Medical ID Alert!!!!!

I am a Paramedic..
I had a St Jude PM placed on July 25 2008. UMMMMM>>

YES...you do need a Medic Alert Tag! I went out and got one within days of my surgery.

If you are under the age of 70....we will not be looking for a PM.
I am still not looking for one then....but I might be more apt to think heart history.
You would be surprised how many people do NOT mention they have a PM....and more and more folks like me are having them buried!
Pacer Spikes d...

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2 questions!

Hello!!!! Hope you are all well? Not been on for a while!

Ok, 2 questions coming up.... I have been incredibly tired recently..... it was half term lfor my children ast week and I enjoyed several long lie-ins, very rare in our house-hold. Anyway, a few days I really had to force myself to get up! It was like having jet-lag! Then I feel very groggy for a couple of hours. But if I know I have somewhere to go I can get up and get going! Anyone else struggle like this!

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Another Surgery

I have to go in this Thursday to have my pacer repositioned.....it started flipping around in there and now the leads are twisted. Anyone else ever had this happen and if so is the surgery as bad as when they first implant it?? Also do they cut over the same scar or will I have to have another one?

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Dizzyness ?

Had PM inserted July 2008. EVERYTHING 100% since then. However, However, last 3 mornings I have woken up slightly dizzy - need to reach for support occasionally.

Self check bp = 118/79 @ 72bpm

All back to normal by midday.
Should I contact PM technician or my GP?
Any ideas/experience anyone?

Denis S (aka Caesium)

ps Very much appreciate this message site - part of my morning's activity!

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Diet & Sodium question

Hi everyone!

While this doesn't exactly pertain to PM's or ICD's I know many of us are sodium restricted diets, etc because of our hearts.

My question is regarding sodium. I use a free site called the daily plate.com to track my calories and sodium. Each day I try to keep my sodium under 2,000mg and my calories to 1,800 or so. I recently had a 24 hr urine test done to check my sodium levels and it came back with a nasty letter from the doctor saying that I had consumed o...

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about bioheart

someone recently wrote about bioheart and its progress in repairing scarred areas of the heart with your own stem cells injected into the heart. (bioheartinc.net), the publisher wrote on this to tell of her friend who is progressing quite well with this therapy. well, i've checked into it a bit more and if you go to the website of bioheart, i believe one of their testimonials as cited on CNN is quite unbelieveable. one of their anchors actually received the operation and is doing fine now....

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Pulse in ears?

I remember being able to hear my pulse in my ears years ago when I was battling my many heart arrhythmias.
I'm surprised that it's come back now since my pacemaker implant. I can see it keeping me awake at night if I let it, but I just try to tone it out. It's just a constant swishing sound. I can count my pulse just by hearing it in my ears. It's rather annoying. I know my blood pressure is not high because I take a ton of Toprol. I have had a bout of CHF symptoms this weekend (rapid weigh...

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Another newbie from downunder!

Hi there, I have been lurking in the shadows here since my hubby Graham had a dual chamber pacemaker fitted in early March to see if it would provide G with some relief from A.Fib. Unfortunately it has not. His cardio in conjuction with the E.P. thought the next course of action should be an A.V. Node ablation. Neither of us were that keen On this route but if it meant better quality of life for G we would go with it. We have just received a letter from the Hosp where the A.V.Node ablation would...

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correction on bioheart

sorry. but it's
bioheart.com, not bioheart.net, somehow there was a mix up
thanks

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Hot flushes and skin sensations after pacemaker

Hello,
My dad had a few episodes of arrythmia and had to have a pacemaker fitted in July. He has been fine since then until now. Today he has told me that he sometimes has hot flushes that last for around 20 minutes and a strange sensation on his skin all over his body that feels like something is crawling on him. Does anyone know what this could be?
Thanks

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400 BPM?

Hello friends. I'd appreciate any insight into whay this happened: A recent reading on my Enpulse dual chamber recently included a heart rate of over 400 bpm for several seconds. I looked up the time - it was during surgery to perform triple fusion in cervical/neck area. I don't have a history of rapid heart rate or fibrillation (my pm is for heart block in the His bundle). The surgeon is a highly aclaimed neurosurgeon that I trust. Everyone involved knew about the surgery and a Medtronic...

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spark firing out

Hi pm mates,

Have any of you felt any ticking on your ventrical lead, usually when bending your chest over?.

I have been feeling this tick since surgery, 45 days ago. I will have my check up next friday so any input will be welcomed.

Frank, I will also take your advice regarding the responce rate feature. I will ask my ECD about my shotness of breaths encouraging him to turn it off.

Thanks,

Oscar.

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Pacemaker at 35

So from reading the site, I'm finding pacemakers for bradycardia at my age are not as uncommon as I'd suspected. I am 35 and scheduled for a pacemaker on 11/21/08. I have two small kids, 2 and 4. I have not had symptoms (or not that I've noticed) other than the low pulse - consistently around 40. I found the problem when I bought a heart rate monitor for exercise and thought it was broken!

So my biggest concerns are recovery with small kids to care for and also if this might be he...

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Medical Bracelets??

I'm getting a pacemaker later this month and wondering, should I get a medical bracelet?

AC

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Time to Vent....

Hello Everyone,

I just need to vent. I am doing a lot better than when I posted for the first time last year. I was suffering from depression, anxiety, shortness of breath, and just downright hopelessness.

I thank God that I read a report from Dr. Whitaker's Health and Healing Newsletter about the many benefits of taking fish oil. I take 6-8 caps of the NOW Brand Salmon Oil daily and after a few weeks my depression totally left.

I did a colon cleanse from Dr. Sch...

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????????

?? I have been having trouble with amiodarone first i was on 400 mg then 200 then 100 still was having bad reaction. so I stopped it DONT DO THAT I had for gotten what the defib felt like just went off called dr we are trying over the phone to get me back on track. My ? is has anyone been on the same drug had the same problem what did you change to.

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You know you're wired when...

You have a new body part.

Member Quotes

I have a well tuned pacer. I hardly know I have it. I am 76 year old, hike and camp alone in the desert. I have more energy than I have had in a long time. The only problem is my wife wants to have a knob installed so she can turn the pacer down.