Thread: Defribrillator

My Dad has one & has been told not to weld, climb a ladder, use a chainsaw or go through any type of magnetic security scanner. He has to carry a card with him when he goes to the airport.

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

My Dad has one & has been told not to weld, climb a ladder, use a chainsaw or go through any type of magnetic security scanner. He has to carry a card with him when he goes to the airport.

Have a look at this link, its getting a little dated now though Lecture Arrhytmias and Electrophysiology

"From a practical standpoint, most patients who do "arc welding" use low-amperage equipment for hobby welding. If the patient uses
welding equipment in the 100 to 150 A range, significant EMI is unlikely to occur [27]. However, before giving a patient
permission to return to this activity, the clinician caring for the patient with an implanted device must consider the type of hardware implanted as well as the dependency status."

Further to this... Dad's implant started mucking up just over a year ago now, it was booting him when he didn't need it.
It hit him 12 times before he got to hospital & they sticky taped a magnet over it to turn it off until they could cut it out & fit him up with a new one.

Why?

It is a bloody pity that they didn't tell my Dad a whole lot sooner 'cos the stinking thing nearly bloody killed him when it mucked up.

Yup, sure are... the ones that didn't tell him how to turn it off for himself if it went wrong.

The damned thing started giving warning signals & when he rang the Doc he was told that it mean that it was malfunctioning & it could start booting him.
The dopey bugger didn't tell him what to do if it did start booting him, he just told him to get on a plane the next day & fly to Brisbane to have it replaced.... not even 4 hours later it dropped him in a heap & continued to boot him until he got to hospital.

Well that all sounds good I think not!

Best advice is from your cardiologist or if you know the manufacturer of the device, contact them (usually medtronic). You should of received some information with the device, go through that as well

Originally Posted by China

Well that all sounds good I think not!

China, hope the PM's are hepfull. I'll reproduce some of the text for general consumption here. (only left out personal stuff - for the curious!)

Don't be discouraged - you may be able to still use the Welder & other tools etc, IF you discuss it with your Cardiologist and get them to discuss your wishes with the device manufacturer, Medtronics, Boston, or St Jude. Telling them exactly what you would like to do is very important even down to supplying the specifications of the welder etc, as they are busy people & don’t like time wasters. Helping them by supplying the info & doing the homework, how you propose to manage risks, helps your cause.

You can find out much more info on quite a few other sites from the manufacturers, the Heart Rhythm Society, Heart Foundation etc.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, for us, medical specialists err on the very conservative side obviously for ethical (& insurance) reasons. You need to understand what happens if interference from magnetic or EMI/F fields interrupts its function when you need a therapy. Knowing your device dependency status is very important, as is knowing how regular your events are, and how life threatening they are. A device not delivering a therapy when it should or prevented from delivering a therapy by interference (or a moronic practical joke) , or a Good Samaritan thinking they are helping you by stopping the horrible shocks, are seriously life threatening. The advice re chainsaw’s, small motor ignition systems, ladders, climbing on roof’s, even driving a car etc is very good general advice, but it can be managed with assistance from the cardio’s etc.

Once you understand your heart condition and it has stabilised after the implant & your recovery you MAY POSSIBLY be able to manage a return to some of the higher risk activities, like welding. You must have a good understanding of the hazards, risks to your health (ie yours & others lives) and how to minimise the risk by following their advice and having sensible precautions in place. Simple things like having another around who knows what to do, in safety, if it all goes pear shaped. Telling them you have a device, how to safely isolate the power to the welder, call for an ambulance etc, what to do for first aid may well save yours & their lives. The old boy scouts thing – be prepared. May seem a bit over the top but often bystanders are placed at great risk by being a Good Samaritan.

Quality of life is very important, doing the things that make you happy actually helps your recovery & life expectancy, but not if it presents a high risk to you & others.

Defib’s are pretty serious stuff – they’re there to automatically preserve & save your life thru the therapies and defib shocks they deliver. Pacemakers are also serious stuff, but have different hazards and risks.

Inadvertant therapies (device faults etc) are only inadvertant therapies when proven so by qualified Cardiologists downloading the devices history and examining it. 20/20 hindsight is a wonderfull thing isn't it.

Wishing you well.

My wife got one last year and she was given a booklet which says she should not be within one metre of a welder in operation.

Mobyturns,
Don't know about your dad's device but the one my wife has is configurable via wireless. The tech places a receiver against her skin and is able to read any logged events and change the configuration via a laptop. It has actually saved her life a couple of times.
That said of course, the device can still be faulty.
Sounds like a horrible situation for your dad. Worst case scenario that just should not be technically possible.

Wrong bloke.

Moby has his own device.

It was/is my Dad who has/had the problem one.

It was replaced with a newer model and the newer model had more functions & they tried to install a 2nd wire to the heart but couldn't get it to go in.
They gave up trying but in the process of all the stuffing around, he ended up with an infection on his aorta that meant he never really recovered from the 'repair' operation.
It went undetected for several months while his health went downhill.
When they finally worked out what was wrong, he then needed extensive surgery to fix.

Needless to say he is only a shadow of his former self before the rotten thing started mucking up.

Originally Posted by AxelVK

Worst case scenario that just should not be technically possible.

Unfortunately it is a known complication, it is possible, & it does happen, but it is far better than the alternative. Thats why they recommend you avoid using things like welders etc because they have the potential to disrupt the device or to induce false sensing. I also happens more often when the human it is implanted into is reaching end of life. Patients or their attorney can request through an advanced health care directive for certain therapies to be modified or even witheld.

Thanks for the replies

It looks as though with the latest units it is more the industrial high frequency units that are the ones most likely to cause problems.

We will see whst the future holds