Checkup Nightmares...

Has anyone ever had just a really horrible checkup for their PM?

Usually, I don't mind so much my experiences at the doctor's office, but every now and then I'll have a bad experience that causes me o dread my next visit.

One time in particularly happened just a few years ago, before my replacement surgery while I was still in high school. I had that particular PM for about 13 years at that point and it really needed to e replaced, so I was having very regular visits. Usually, my cardiologist does my check up obviously, but this particular time, he felt it okay to leave me in the hands of a less than knowledgeable intern. When tracking my heart rate, etc. e adjusted my PM several times to different speeds and what not, I guess just to see how it affects me. Wen he accidentally turned my PM off! I could feel my body shutting down immediately. I lost feeling in my limbs and tongue. My eyesight diminished and my body started to shake violently. Luckily, my mother was there. I could faintly hear her yelling at the intern, whom turned my PM back after about 15-20 seconds. I could feel myself come back. All he had to say was, "Oops...my bad."

8 Comments

Thank God for your Mom!

by pacergirl - 2009-02-10 11:02:35

This is unbelievable. If I were you, I would never, ever allow an intern to come near me again. NOT NOW. NOT NO WAY. NOT EVER. End of story.

Good grief, what in the heck did he think would happen? Did he even stop to consider he could have killed you? Did he think that somehow you really didn't need a pacemaker?

Like I have always said... Stupid people, like that intern, bother me.
Pacergirl

Checkup Nightmare

by SMITTY - 2009-02-11 11:02:04

Hello,

I'm glad you survived that set-too with the most incompetent technician (?) I ever heard of. However, in the interest of not having other pacemaker wearers that may read of your experience, think they run the risk of having their pacemaker turned off, I would like to say one thing and that is A PACEMAKER CANNOT BE TURNED OFF. That is not to say the settings on a PM cannot be so thoroughly screwed up that the patient would not be better off if the thing had been turned off.

Now before everybody starts calling me a S.A. for being so bold with my statement that a PM cannot be turned off let me explain how I came about this information.

I've had my PM since 2000 and had to live through hell with it for 2+ years. The pain was so bad that I asked for mine to be turned off. The quack (hereafter known as Aflac) that had implanted the thing told he would comply if I was willing to accept the risk. So far as I knew he did turn it off since the shocks I was receiving from it went away. I learned later that the PM could not be turned off and what Aflac did for was set the low setting at 30 BPM. That meant the PM would continue to monitor my heart function but would not help make it beat unless my heart rate dropped below 30 BPM. That never happened and so far as I knew my PM was turned off.

Sometime later while reading about pacemakers I came upon an article about what marvelous invention the batteries were that are used in today’s pacemakers. The article went on to say that from time a pacemaker is assembled, the battery put in and connected and the PM case sealed and the PM is checked out to be sure it functions properly the battery never stops powering some part of that pacemaker until the very end of the battery life, which is usually several years.

My guess as I said earlier is that what happened to you is that idiot so thoroughly screwed up your PM settings that he in effect stopped your heart from beign able to pump blood throughout your body. I don't know what all can be changed on a PM, but I do know that the voltage, or strength of the impulse can be changed. Also, the PM has timing settings which allows the PM to give your heart's natural pacemaker time to try to make the heart beat before the PM will step in and send the needed impulse. I can easily see where if the timing setting were off it could have the PM sending impulses to make the heart beat that were in total conflict with what the heart's natural PM was trying to do.

I know how that can feel because I had the rate response on my PM activated a couple of times and each time the timing setting was not correct and the PM was sending an impulse to the ventricle to contract before the atrial had completed its task of transferring blood into the ventricle which cause a back pressure on the mitral valve and that hurt. While my pain was not much more than an attention getter, I can see where if the settings were totally askew that an experience like you had could occur.

Reading of experiences like yours should make all of us aware that not all doctors and especially not all PM techs are created equal. In other words I think there are some real dumb butts out there and any time we think something is amiss with our PM after a checkup, we should sound off loud and clear.

Smitty

opps.....

by sis - 2009-02-11 12:02:10

I got a dingy nurse my very FIRST ICD check. She hooked me up and jolted me outta my chair!!! Then said OPPS!!!!!!!!! By this time I was freaking out & crying and wanted to through the donut right at her and I would not sit in the chair. My husband told her to get the Doctor and not to touch me. He said the nurse started me on a level 4 and when the Doc came in he started it on level 1.........I had a panic attack just with the site f the big blue chair for the next few interrigations! LOL I don't care for that dingy nurse and have since requested NOT to have her ever again.
I am so glad that you were ok after that horrible episode!!!!

My Mistakesw

by SMITTY - 2009-02-12 04:02:23

Hey people, I'm wrong again. Your pacemaker does have a switch that can be flipped to on or off. So forget what I said about a pacemaker cannot be turned off. I even went back and reread that article where I got my information and realized that clown must have not known what he was talking about. I even emailed him and suggested that he log onto the Pacemaker Club site and update his information.

Now, I think I'll contact Dr. Price and ask him why he didn't turn off my PM off as I requested. Also, I give my solemn promise that I will never again be wrong.

Solution to the problem

by ElectricFrank - 2009-02-12 12:02:18

Aside from avoiding that intern, there is a way to deal with the situation. If you feel yourself starting to pass out from the pacer being off during a checkup, just reach up and pull the "magnet" or puck off your chest. The pacers are designed to return to operation immediately.

By the way I also experienced a similar thing only at my request and with a competent Medtronics rep at the controls. I wanted to know just how dependent I am on the pacer so I asked him to turn it off for a short time to check it out. In my case my heart beat stopped for probably 10 seconds and then started on its own only at 30 BPM. I felt it but didn't pass out, so I had him repeat the test with me standing up. Same results. The difference though from your experience is that he did it on purpose and watched me closely.

frank

Being Wrong

by SMITTY - 2009-02-13 09:02:11

Frank,

I know what you mean. It seems to be happening more and more often and that gets so aggravating. However, since I'm qualified to do self diagnosis I have determined that this is happening more and more frequently all because of the more frequent visits I think I am getting from Al. I've done everything I can to convince him that I don't need or want his visits, all to no avail.

Oh well, so goes another day in the life of a genius, which, Frank, I'm sure that you understand.

Smitty

Being wrong

by ElectricFrank - 2009-02-13 12:02:15

Smitty,
I have the same problem. I remember the last time I was wrong..I thought I was wrong and I wasn't!!!

best,

frank

I sure do understand

by ElectricFrank - 2009-02-14 12:02:38

I also find I spend a lot of time talking to myself. I like to talk with an intelligent person. G(:

frank

You know you're wired when...

Bad hair days can be blamed on your device shorting out.

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