pacemaker

check up

by new to pace.... - 2021-12-23 12:37:52

You should have been given an appointment to have your stitches  removed or just to see how things are going.

  At that time you can ask all your questions.

new to pace

Check

by AgentX86 - 2021-12-23 14:38:40

Sure.  They will set up regular appointments where they will "interrogate" your pacemaker to see, not only how it's doing but how you're doing. They also should have sent you home (or soon will) with a remote monitoring station that you set up on your bedstand.  If you feel anything strange, you can upload the stored information to them to check.  Depending on your condition this might happen periodically, perhaps every night.

Modern pacemakers connect to the base station via Bluetooth so the "box" may be your cell phone.

pacemaker

by Stephen R - 2021-12-23 17:38:26

I received a Merlin@home transmitter about a week after, the surgery by Fedex. It came with connections for a landline but, I only have a cell phone so they sent me a cell adapter after I contacted them. I don't get much info from the dr. she's from Pakistan and I can't seem to communicate too well with her I was sent home the same day as the surgery with the wrong directions sheet and also, the IV still in my arm. I was still not completly awake so I didn't notice the IV till later that evening due to long sleeve shirt. Thanks! 

IV still in my arm

by AgentX86 - 2021-12-23 18:09:29

That's a new one! Sending you home without being fully awake is also very unusual (dangerous, too). There is a reason for "revocery rooms".

The Merlin checks on your PM and you.  You won't have to worry about the battery for some years but it'll keep the PM intouch with your doctors.  You'll also have in-office checks with technicians in a "device clinic".  The Merlin and device clinic data is set to your doctor for review.

Stitches

by KF - 2021-12-23 18:31:59

I have a Medtronic Azure xt.  1-1/2 years.I also have a monitor on my night table. Every six months in the wee hours it sends data to the doctor who placed it. I will just say that over time the only reminder that you have a pacemaker will be that the scar will itch like the hell. Otherwise the cardiologist is your main guy, so be happy and well. And by the way, my stiches just fell out on their own. 

Stitches

by Stephen R - 2021-12-24 10:54:23

They didn't use stitches on mine, I asked the nurse and she said it was closed from the inside? Does my dr. need to program my Merlin@home transmitter or, do they program the PM it's self? Thank You! 

stitches

by new to pace.... - 2021-12-24 17:01:54

The pacemaker is  programed.  The transmitter just tranmitts the information that is in the pacemaker.

 Mine is done nightly so i've been told.  Than quarterly(was told that is how they get paid).  Some one  did  not  tell them as Medicare has not been billed since  April  or the  yearly transmissions.

 I see the pacemaker clinic one a year in their office.  Where they run a check on the pacemaker. Otherwise after each quartely oheck i call and ask for a copy of the transmission.

For your next appointment with your doctor  write down all your questions to ask, Some of which you have been asking here.

My shoulder was done from the inside.  does not leave a noticeable scar. 

new to pace

stitches

by Stephen R - 2021-12-24 17:10:31

That must be how they did my surgery Thanks very much for the info!

Merlin@Home Monitor

by Marybird - 2021-12-24 18:02:26

Hi Stephen,

I also have a St. Jude dual lead pacemaker ( mine is an Assurity MRI model 2272), with a Merlin@Home transmitter. 

I just wanted to mention that your transmitter may not be programmed/ paired with your pacemaker yet, if they sent the transmitter in the mail to you. The pacemaker must be in close proximity to the transmitter for this to occur, and they may be expecting you to complete this process when you receive the transmitter. If so, there should be instructions in or on the box ( A,Quick Start Guide) that take you stepwise through the process. Basically this entails attaching the cell phone adaptor, plugging in the power, sitting next to your transmitter, and pushing the large button on the left, watching the transmitter go through its process as the icons light up, and once they are completed the green power light on the right side at the bottom stays lit. Your pacemaker will communicate with the transmitter, and the transmitter will transmit the report to the manufacturer's secure website so it's available to your doctor.

Often transmitters are programmed when you receive them in the doctor's office ( they go through that pairing process,while you are there) or as my transmitter was, programmed and paired with the pacemaker by the pacemaker technician before it's implanted. In my case, they gave me the already programmed monitor to take home with me.

But usually when the company mails them to you, they need to be programmed. You can find out for sure about this by calling the St. Jude customer service number at the top of your transmitter. Their customer service is excellent, they can tell you if it's programmed/paired and can walk you through the process as you do so. I wasn't sure if mine was programmed when I got home, so called that number the next day. They told me it was all set up, but offered to walk me through a manual transmission ( the same process used to set it up), so I could see how it worked. 

Your doctor's office/clinic makes the decisions as to how often your transmitter sends remote reports, that's a question to ask them. Many people( including me), have them transmitted every 90 days, though some people have them every 6 months, it's up to your doctor. They also recommend yearly in office pacemaker checks, but again, that's up to the doctor. 

Best of luck with this, I know it's overwhelming at first, but with any luck, it will just become second nature after some time. 

Merlin@Home Monitor

by Stephen R - 2021-12-24 18:26:23

Hello, I think I have paired the two by following the directions to manually send info to the hospital. The transmitter read the pm then went throu the other 2 steps on it's own and then turned off with just, the green stand by light on sound about right? Thanks!

That Sounds Just Right

by Marybird - 2021-12-24 19:30:48

Sounds as though you are good to go. 

That little green power LED on the right bottom will likely be all you see once its all set up to let you know everything is good.  You might see some blinking lights on the phone adaptor, or not, depending on the model phone adaptor you have. My old phone adaptor had lights blinking on it depending on what it was doing( ie, searching for a cell tower, locking onto a tower signal, sending a transmission). But they sent me a new cell adaptor last summer and this new one's lights only blink when its first powered up, and when it is sending a transmission, and I guess I am always asleep when it does that, I hve never caught it in the act of transmission.