Pacemakers

The heart has a natural pacemaker, but when it fails to keep up, or becomes blocked, arterial fibrillation continues unchecked and if it cannot be controlled under less invasive measures, a mechanical pacemaker (defibrillators are sometimes implanted at the same time, as well) might be the best answer. Monitoring the heart’s rhythms, it senses and/or stimulates the heart’s atrial and ventricular chambers with an electrical impulse to restore normal heartbeat. Today’s pacemakers are externally programmable, allowing for a wider choice of pacing modes to best reproduce your natural rhythm.

Arrhythmias (ah-RITH-me-ahs) affect the rhythm of heart rate: too fast (tachycardia), too slow (bradycardia), or a combination. When the heart has difficulty pumping blood, symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue or fainting can interrupt your life. In severe cases, they damage vital organs, cause unconsciousness and/or death. To avoid this, pacemakers are often used to restore you to your usual routine.

Consult OHI for Cardiovascular Surgery – Florida

Epicardial implantation normally takes from 30 to 90 minutes. Endocardial procedures typically last from one to five hours. The electrophysiologist (a cardiologist specializing in abnormal heart rhythms) creates a “pocket” in the subcutaneous fat of the chest wall under your skin (placement may vary, it is usually in the left shoulder area, below the collar bone) and inserts the pacemaker (“pulse generator”). Using fluoroscopy, electrodes are threaded up to the heart through a vein, entering into the heart’s chamber through a valve. Depending on medical need, one or more electrodes may be used, or one or more chambers may need implantation (single-chamber or dual-chamber pacemakers). The electrodes are then attached to a pacemaker generator. A rate-responsive pacemaker self-adjusts to accommodate changes in the Florida patient’s physical activities.

Periodic in-office echocardiography check-ups for pacemakers are routinely done every six months to one year for adjustment or replacement as needed. Normal activities can be resumed after surgery, with some modifications: contact sports are discouraged, as is any work or recreation that might expose you to a high magnetic field (working with MRI, or Magnetic Resonance Imaging Machine, for instance).

Consider our Interventional Electrophysiologists
& Heart Surgeons

Offering the best in Florida Interventional Electrophysiology, Ocala Heart Institute is considered one of the top facilities in the nation. Contact us today!