Medtronic KAPPA DR Pacemaker

How do all of you know about the leads, etc. etc. of you pacers. I've had mine since 12/16/02 ;o) which has made my life wonderful. I know it's getting near battery replacement...how does one know other than the 6 month dial in test? What if it decides to STOP......I have it as a result of arrythmia and it paces my heart....it goes dead....I go dead;-(

6 Comments

won't just stop!

by Tracey_E - 2009-12-28 07:12:30

I have checks more often when I get in the last six months. Do you go in for check ups or just dial in? I go every 3 months, then every month when it's down to the end of the battery life. I'm there now and expect to schedule my replacement when I go again in early Jan.

Pm's have a conservation mode they go in to at the end, it won't just stop. It can last about 3 months in this mode. Some insurance co's require this mode before replacement, some allow it when it gets low. I've had three replacements and have never gone into this mode but a lot of members here have. EOL mode has minimal function so most know pretty quickly when it gets there. It won't let your heart get dangerously low, but it stops the extra features, the ones that keep us feeling great by raising our hr as needed.

Leads can theoretically be good for a lifetime. If your leads are good, you'll just get a new battery/generator. Very easy procedure! I'm usually home fixing my own lunch. If you have a bad lead, they will know from your checks, and odds are good something would have been said to you by now. I've had a bad lead for several years now, it is functioning but drained my battery, this one is only 3 yrs old. Even if I hadn't know about the lead before, the short battery life was a big clue.

When in doubt, call and ask! Every pm report has an expected battery life on it.

Won't Stop

by SMITTY - 2009-12-28 09:12:53

Hello Pat,

As Tracey said it won't just stop. I say that because I have a Medtronic KAPPA DR 703 that was implanted in 2000 I'm going to guess yuors is also of the KDR 700 series. Mine had to replaced in Oct '09 after the battery got low. So I think I can tell you a little about wht will happen to your pacemaekr when the battery gets low.

Your PM will go into what is known as the VVI mode. What this says is the PM starts pacing only the ventricle full time. For me thjat meant my heart rate dropped from the normal 80 BPM to 65 BPM It is my understanding this mode will keep a person alive for at least three months and I will say from experiience that will know when it shifts to the VVI mode. I went from havign the energy of an 80 year old to havign the energy of a 100 year old opvernight and it was not fun.

What really irritated me was I had this thing for 9 years and had never heard of this mode from anyone doing my checkups. My last checkup in August showed the battery had an estimated remaining life of 7 months before replacement time. Not knowing what had happened meant that I spent a long 3 day weekend wondering. Then I couldn't get anyone from the pacemaker clinic to return my calls on my Monday. I think it was Tuesday that one of our members posted a message telling us about finding the info about VVI mode which answered my question about what had happened. From there on it was a routine matter of getting a checkup and having the nurse proudly announce "your pacemaker is in VVI mode" which I had already told her. I got my replacement the next day.

Now that is what happened to me, but since you say you are 100% dependant on your PM and I'm not, I suggest that you have a conversation with your doctor about what to expect as your battery could be like mine and not last the predicted time. I will say I'm sure there are enough safety features built into our PM that it will not just shut down and let us die.

Good luck,

Smitty

Easy

by ElectricFrank - 2009-12-29 12:12:52

Ask for a copy of your last checkup. I have instructed the nurse at my cardiologist office to mail these to me as soon as they have it. You could get your last one without waiting for the next.

On the report there will be an estimated remaining battery life.

frank

they dont just stop

by dwelch - 2010-01-21 04:01:48


I am on number three. They go into a power saving mode that should go for maybe three months. Your doc should be checking either over the phone or walk in pacer checks every month. of course the insurance company has a lot to do with that. If you are worried you can do this yourself. Take your pulse rate (remember with a pacer take a full minute not just 10 seconds and multiply by 6). If at rest or after walking or climbing stairs, whatever it is the same rate, for me the pacer was set to 65, it is in this mode. You should feel it though if you climb a couple flights of stairs and you are breathing really hard your lungs are trying to compensate for the lack of oxygen because the heart didnt speed up.

I started the home stretch period with yesterdays visit, that means for probably the next two years monthly phone checks.

Bottom line, it does not just turn off. With or without the docs help you can figure out when it has changed modes and then you can call them if they have not already called you. if they are not or have not given you special attention for the last year or two maybe it time for a new doc.

Thank You ;)

by PatMauro - 2010-01-21 05:01:58

Thanks to those who emailed a note.....I feel sooo much better:) We are out of town (FL) for 6 months and my DR is in Missouri....she assured me I was okay till I see her in May '10. I do a monthly dial-in test so I'm covered :o) The ticker is fine as far as I can tell so I'll not worry! Thanks again for your help! Happy pacemaking!

Pacemaker replacement!

by PatMauro - 2010-11-25 10:11:09

Hi everyone! Happy Thanksgiving! Next week I will have the Medtronic Kappa KDR901 pm replaced. Guess I'm a little concerned but all should go well. I am pm dependent.....in arrythmia 24/7 now. The pm has changed our life to the WONDERFUL mode ;-)) It lasted 8 years and that's good I'm told. Sooooo, wish me luck next Wednesday. Any comments will be appreciated.

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