Pacemaker Services

Damage to heart muscle cells often results in interrupted or delayed electrical heart rhythms, often causing the heartbeat to become irregular, too fast, or too slow. In this case, the patient may require a Pacemaker-- a device that helps restore normal heartbeats.

There are multiple types of Pacemakers to treat rhythm disturbances of all types. Your cardiologist will review your situation and recommend the best pacemaker for you.

Pre-Treatment Guidelines

The Pacemaker procedure is not preparation-intensive-- the patient simply needs to inform the doctor of how they are feeling on the day of the procedure. In addition, the patient should inform the doctor of all medications taken in past months. Finally, the patient should not eat for the twelve hours leading up to surgery.

Pacemaker Facts

• More than 500,000 people in the United States currently rely on Pacemakers to correct a slow, irregular, or otherwise abnormal heartbeat.
• Pacemakers can be temporary or permanent, external or internal. Temporary external Pacemakers are usually reserved for patients who have a transient heart malfunction or require major surgery that could interfere with the normal heartbeat. Internal pacemakers are used for chronic conditions that cause persistent or intermittent slowing of the heart rate.
• Pacemaker insertion often is a straightforward, outpatient procedure, and complications occur in only 1 to 2 percent of insertions.
• Once the pacemaker is fully adjusted, the patient should be able to carry out all the functions of normal daily life, with the pacemaker automatically adapting to various circulation and heartbeat needs.