My CRT-D went straight to EOL and skipped ERI completely

I wrestled with whether or not to post this, not wanting to frighten any newbies so I took the post down until I got more information.  Please keep in mind this is very, very rare. 

In April, the interrogation showed I had 7 months battery life left on my CRT-D.  2 months later in June, my device starting beeping every 6 hours (a red flag but who knew).  I went in to my Cardio's office and my nurse interrogated my device and it revealed I have < 3 months left BUT it never went into ERI (Elective Replacement Indicator) first. 

She called Boston Scientific and they said something wasn't right.  They wanted a copy of the download so the engineer could review it.  She emailed it to BS and they confirmed it.....it went right to EOL (End of Life) in the middle of June and never registered ERI.  They said then 10 days later the capacitor recharged and it went just above the EOL threshold but still never showed ERI and it still showed less than 3 months battery life.  The tech at BS told them this was "very rare" and they don't know why it happened.   

Because the download did not read EOL, BS had to send a letter stating it is definitely in EOL, in order for the replacement to be covered by insurance.   

So my replacement will be this Thursday.  This will be my first replacement after almost 10 years with my original device.  I told my wonderful nurse....they are going to need a jackhammer to get this out after 10 years.  Anybody want to go for me?   

So it's important to just take note and be aware that anything is possible....even though some say that it won't/ can't happen.  It may be rare but that doesn't mean never. 

Grateful Heart

5 Comments

wow

by Tracey_E - 2018-07-18 09:31:40

How crazy!!! Good thing you stay on top of it.

Replacements are a piece of cake!! I'm told my last one was really stuck. I never knew the difference. It's all scar tissue so it doesn't really get sore. You got this! Will be thinking of you tomorrow. 

Sounds familiar

by The real Patch - 2018-07-18 15:56:46

Sounds like the recalled St. Judes devices. Batteries lose charge, die, or fail unexpectedly. 

Cheeze- I told you so!!!

by donr - 2018-07-18 19:20:07

GH:  Actually, I never told you so, but after a pair of "Wows" I figure that would be a good change of pace (pun intended). 

I'll betcha that your battery did NOT die.  You had a component of your PM circuits croak.  That brought the battery down precipitously so that the nightly (or whatever) battery check did not have a chance to catch it happen. 

I just consulted an expert - Dr. Google.  Go here to see what he says about St Jude's CRTD batteries.

https://www.sjm.com/en/patients/arrhythmias/resources-support/battery-advisory

Surprised?  Not on my watch they weren't.

Don

BS

by Grateful Heart - 2018-07-18 21:22:35

Now that I got your attention...lol. 

My device is a BS...Boston Scientific...not St. Jude's and I've had it since 2008.

They are indeed aware of St. Jude's battery recalls.  They said they don't know why this happened.  BS wants my device back for further testing.  Can't wait to hear what they discover.

Grateful Heart

Ande I wish you well ...

by donr - 2018-07-19 01:32:01


...on the\ morrow.  At least they don't have to thread lead three again

Don

You know you're wired when...

You have a 25 year mortgage on your device.

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