Battery question and weights

Relax...

by crustyg - 2022-01-07 05:02:45

Stop fretting about battery life. Please don't torment yourself trying to predict the future.  Unless you are very unlucky, you'll get the expected 6-8years out of your current device.  Worrying won't make it any better or easier.

Leads are very difficult to dislodge if your EP-doc has implanted the correct length (they come if various lengths) and has used modern, active-fixation ones.  Yes, you will read the occasional post here from someone whose lead was dislodged shortly after implantation - this is always EP-doc error.  Just think about your beating heart: it MOVES!  So the leads have to move with each beat, and that's way more movement than you're going to be able to achieve by lifting weights.  The reason why EP-docs say don't lift the L arm above the shoulder for a while after first implantation is that it's possible to stretch the vein where the leads enter your circulation (and the leads are actually fixed here) away from the heart, and if the lead is at all short, then this can cause the lead to dislodge at the heart muscle.  It's very uncommon.

Almost everyone worries too much after first implantation, and you see a biased set of reports of issues here, as happy folk don't post about 'Ten weeks in, and all's well!'

Instead, focus on enjoying life, the things you couldn't do before your PM and the fun things you can do in the future.

Best wishes.

What matters is your life, not the battery's life

by Gotrhythm - 2022-01-07 11:21:40

The figure you were given for battery usage is an estimate. Only that. Don't be surprised if in six months it's still at 95%. 

The amount of battery you're using can go up or down as other factors change. Don't attach too much meaning to it. For sure, don't spend time worrying about it or trying to save the battery. The whole point of having a pacemaker is to get your heart the help it needs to beat fast enough so you can have the best quality of life possible. To live your life to the fullest, well, takes as much battery as it takes.

As for lead displacement I have nothing to add to Crustyg's reply except to say the more time that passes after your surgery, the less likely that leads will dislodge. In addition to all that is done to make them the right length, etc, they are held in place by scar tissue that your body makes. The  wound you can see on the outside is scarred over isn't it? Well, the same healing has been going on inside. After six weeks, it's unlikely that anything could accidently cause the leads to come loose. Certainly not picking up a 14lb puppy.

At this point any amount of weight that isn't too much for your back, arms, and legs is safe for your pacemaker leads.

Get on with life

by Stache - 2022-01-08 15:38:40

I have been implanted for 11-months now with a dual-chamber pacer beating my heart 100% of the time.  The warranty says it is good for 10-plus years.  So far I still have a little of 9-years on the battery charge.  Of course, my pacer is blue tooth and I have a bedside monitor that will notify me when the battery is low as will the chirping sound the pacer will make indicating I have 3-months remaining.

This past 11-months I have been through hell worrying about my condition and battery life all for nothing.  I have done the research on my St Jude pacer and battery life.  I have had long discussions with the manufacture and read the document on my pacer.  I have learned the internet is full of useless information designed to scare us.

I have put all of my fears behind me now and just enjoy riding my bike, hiking every day, and being alive.  When the battery runs down I will just have it changed, it’s a piece of cake.  Worrying is not the answer nor is reading all the nonsense of the internet from people who have no real-life experiences as we do.

I was also afraid

by stillshocked - 2022-01-09 21:21:55

I am getting ready for my 3rd one now.

On my first implant I was told more about lifting my left arm above 45 degrees for 6-8 weeks.  

Tge battery life should be good, I pace 80%in both chambers and my last PM lasted over 10 years, same on my first.   The % will change each times, your tech should talk to you in years as well as%'s.   That way it feels more comfortable.

Best wishes and health

less

by dwelch - 2022-02-01 16:40:07

I am on my fifth device, and I think after the first few months it said something like 4years left, which was absurd that is well under 95%.  But I have long since known not to care, the estimate is bogus.   As my doc says it is not accurate until it says weeks.

This is the one part of the report (you should ask for a printout each time you go) to ignore, the doc might even mention what it says and comment, but they know to not really care about it.

Is the device working, did you have events, are the events okay, etc.  that is what matters.  The first year you might need to make some tweaks, those are what matter.   

Even if the device only lasts a few years, so what, a few weeks of recovery aint not thing.  It would be a fluke and the next one should be better.  my average does not sound good with 34 years and 4.5 devices, but one of them we took out at 3.5 years or so to upgrade to a biventrical.  The others were in that 7-10 year range.

Every generation of device is in theory, better. they certainly got smaller, and had more features in the last 30 years.  My first one was huge and primitive compared to today, took several trips to tune it, today they to some extent self tune.

Not really easy to move the leads.  If you just went in to see them I assume they did a quick visual and felt around the device.  I somehow got a lead on my first device over and on top of the device, so you could not only see the huge at the time device stiking out from my skinny at the time body. but you could see the bumps where the lead was on the wrong side of the device.  7 years like that it was all fine in the end.