There can be no overestimating the important role the human heart plays in keeping a person alive. When a person’s heart stops, they stop. If a person’s heart has diminished function, the person’s ability to function is diminished. Some irregularities can be controlled through surgery, others through medicine and some require pacemaker implantation.
A pacemaker is designed to normalize a person’s heart rhythm. This in turn improves their quality of life. Our physicians recommend that patients who have a wide array of cardiac distress explore the possibility of using a pacemaker.
Pacemakers are small electronic devices that are put inside a person’s chest. It monitors the heart rhythm and heart function. If it detects an irregular heartbeat, it will send an electrical signal to the heart to stabilize it.
The primary goal of a pacemaker is to help a person have a normal heartbeat. The pacemaker will examine a person’s normal resting heartrate and will monitor the way the heart accelerates and decelerates.
It is able to determine if the acceleration is caused by an increase in physical exertion, or if it is caused by a pacing problem with the heart. If the latter is the culprit, the pacemaker will help the heart to establish atrioventricular synchrony.
Pacemakers help alleviate symptoms that are caused by an accelerated heartrate, a slow heartbeat or an irregular heartbeat. Each of these conditions produce the same symptoms, including a sense of fatigue, shortness of breath and chest pain.
It should be clarified that pacemakers are not designed to eliminate the symptoms, but instead to stabilize the heart rhythm. This causes many of the symptoms to disappear.
Pacemakers do require their user to change some aspects of their daily routine. For example, an individual who had the habit of lifting weights or engaging in extreme motions using the upper extremities may need to change their habits. This is because extreme motions in the upper extremities could crack or damage the lead in the pacemaker. This will stop the device from regulating the person’s heartbeat.
While this has only happened in a few documented cases over the past decades, heavy weightlifting is still not recommended. Additionally, individuals with a pacemaker may need to stay away from jobs and daily activities that require heavy lifting.
Pacemakers improve the quality of life for many people. Many surgeons comment on how their patients experience improved physical activity after having a pacemaker installed. This is especially the case for patients who are under the age of 75.
Pacemakers, especially when used with other devices to improve cardiovascular function, drastically reduce mortality rates in individuals who are experiencing heart failure.
Located in Fort Myers, The Vein Center at Cardiology Consultants of Southwest Florida offers pacemaker implantation as an effective way to monitor the functionality of the heart.
Contact our office today to schedule your appointment to see how pacemaker implantation can benefit you.
