Pacemaker Implant

Part II

Before and after surgery

My office will advice you

• Hold blood thinners:

2 days for Eliquis, Xarelto or Pradaxa; Coumadin as per my office protocol, depending on your other cardiac conditions

• Hold metformin for 2 days

• The hospital will call you the night before regarding time of surgery

• No eating or drinking after midnight the night before surgery

•  Clean your entire chest with Hibiclens Antiseptic Cleanser the evening before procedure and again the morning of procedure; can be found over the counter at any pharmacy 

• If allergic to iodine, follow my office protocol

How do I implant the Pacemaker

• The surgery lasts about 1-2 hours
• You'll receive a sedative but no general anesthesia
• I will make a small incision near your shoulder and I'll pass a wire through it into your veins, guiding it to your heart. I will be guided under X ray machine.
• Using the wire , I will attach the pacemaker lead to your Right ventricle; Using a different wire , I will attach a lead to your Right atrium.

The proximal end of the leads is attached to the Generator, " battery of pacemaker", lying under your skin 

Generator

Leads or

electrodes

After your surgery

• You may go home that evening or may stay overnight, depending on your age and other medical conditions

• You will receive a preventive antibiotic for the next 5 days

• Keep the incision clean and dry for 3 days; no showers, only sponge baths for 3 days

• May shower after 3 days; the steristrips on the incision will fall off over the next few days

After Pacemaker Surgery

Leaving a normal life with a pacemaker

After Pacemaker Surgery

Leaving a normal life with a pacemaker

• Call my office in the next few days to be enrolled in the " telephone  checks"; Joanne, my nurse, will help you connect with pacemaker checking program which allows me to follow your pacemaker settings and activity 

• Joanne , my pacemaker nurse, will guide you for further follow up

• See me in the office 1-3 weeks after implant. 

Leaving a normal life with a pacemaker

• Modern pacemakers are not as sensitive to electrical devices as the old ones 

• However, certain devices could cause interference with your pacemaker

Leaving a normal life with a pacemaker

You should avoid

• keeping a cell phone or MP3 player in the pocket over your pacemaker

• standing long near a microwave

• long exposure to metal detectors

• high-voltage transformers