woke up from surgery with a surprize

[youngmom]

im three weeks post op.doctors replaced my two valves with mechanical valves. then was told i had complete heart block so i received a pacemaker. never had i thought i would have a pacemaker. the pacemaker site still hurts and sitsup on my skin. they put in a permanent one on the 28 of june. recovery has been tuff but this pacemaker has me terrified

 

[ElectLive]

Not to minimize them...but pacemakers are really no big deal. They quietly do their job and at some point you will probably generally forget you even have one. Your heart block could also improve turning your pacemaker into more of an "emergency backup" system as time goes on. I was 100% paced in the beginning and well into the first year, long past when a lot of patients with heart block show improvement.

Approaching 3 years later now, though, and I'm paced a lower and lower percentage of time (only about 1/3 now) each successive checkup. You know, in some ways, they offer very good benefits. They record "events" (afib, flutter, etc) so your medical team will know exactly what is going on, even as it happens in some cases. So yes, I've been there, it is a big surprise, not at first a pleasant one, particularly given how unlikely it is (less than 5%). But I can think of several other members here who have one that have generally good experiences as well. Best wishes to you in your recovery and return to normal.

 

[Guyswell]

I went into surgery with a left bundle branch block and developed total heart block during surgery. After surgery, I went back to having only a left bundle branch block. No permanent pacemaker was installed at that time. Two years later, I was experiencing bradycardia (heartbeat too slow) and fainting, so I received a permanent pacemaker. It paces about 10% of the time and has been no big deal. Many days, I don't think of it except when I see the scar in the mirror. Please don't be terrified. There are plenty of people with pacemakers who are doing just fine. The swelling and pain will subside soon.

 

[Agian]

With pacemakers, can you see their outline under the skin? Just curious.
They say you shouldn't lift your arms above your head, with them.

 

[epstns]

youngmom - I am another member who wasn't expecting to have a pacemaker, yet I do. I had long-standing aortic stenosis and after valve surgery my heart tried any and every combination of rhythm. It went fast, it went slow. It went into afib, tachycardia, bradycardia - then it just stopped, taking pauses of up to 20 seconds. It is not a good thing to see your own heart monitor screen go flat-line, let me tell you. My pacemaker was implanted a few days after surgery, and with one minor exception (tech botched a setting), I haven't looked back. I don't even realize it is there unless I look in a mirror with my shirt off. I am in the gym 5 days a week, ride my bicycle, work on home repair/improvements, lift weights - I do more than most folks my age. No restrictions. You may have some frustration the first few months getting all the settings right, but after that I didn't even notice it. For the first few weeks you cannot raise your left arm over shoulder height, but after the leads are all healed into position, there are no restrictions about range of motion, either. Don't worry about the pacemaker - ignore it. Go on with your life. That's what the pacemaker is there to allow.

Agian - Most pacemaker patients can see their devices just under the skin below their collarbone, on their left side. They are most obvious in thinner patients, but the new devices are much smaller than they were a few years ago. After the leads heal into place (around 4 weeks) there are no range-of-motion restrictions. I just live my life and have it checked twice a year to be sure.

BTW - Don't be terror-stricken about all the warnings regarding electronic devices, either. I even operate a 100-watt amateur radio transmitter with no issues. I travel (ask for manual security check, avoid the metal detectors, back-scatter scanners are OK), drive a car, operate electric tools. Heck, I work in a manufacturing company. I work in the office but often go out into the factory where there are all sorts of big electric and electronic machines running - all with no effect on me.

 

[canon4me]

I apologize for being totally ignorant here, but could somebody please explain what a "heart block" is in reference to surgery like you are talking about here?