Pacemaker control
Discussion
My spouse has just had a pacemaker fitted. It connects wirelessly to an associated gizmo which in turn relays info on to the clinical team for them to monitor. Apparently the clinicians can fine-tune the pacemaker remotely. What limitations and controls are in place to govern such alterations?
Penny Whistle said:
My spouse has just had a pacemaker fitted. It connects wirelessly to an associated gizmo which in turn relays info on to the clinical team for them to monitor. Apparently the clinicians can fine-tune the pacemaker remotely. What limitations and controls are in place to govern such alterations?
Happy to be corrected but I think any tweaking is done in clinc. Had mine fitted December 2022. It's a Boston Scientific kit.
As far as I know, any tweaking is done at the routine annual check by the pacing team at the cardiology unit at my designated hospital.
I have the mobile app for mine which, among several things, tells me when the next data transmission will be made, usually quarterly. As I understand it, the pacemaker is monitored automatically constantly by the pacing team, but there will only ever any direct contact with me if the monitoring looks dodgy.
The bedside monitoring device sometimes comes to life and flashes different colours etc, indicating such things as updates etc, or when it is being checked.
R.
As far as I know, any tweaking is done at the routine annual check by the pacing team at the cardiology unit at my designated hospital.
I have the mobile app for mine which, among several things, tells me when the next data transmission will be made, usually quarterly. As I understand it, the pacemaker is monitored automatically constantly by the pacing team, but there will only ever any direct contact with me if the monitoring looks dodgy.
The bedside monitoring device sometimes comes to life and flashes different colours etc, indicating such things as updates etc, or when it is being checked.
R.
Had my Medtronic device (pacemaker and ICD) fitted 5 years ago. There s no ability to update remotely though it is something they are working on for the next Gen.
Bedside unit downloads and transmits to the lab nightly between 2-5 am.
The team will call you if something pings as needing attention.
I m on 6 monthly phone calls and an annual update in clinic. It s not unusual to get called in if it s an urgent software patch.
Just to add - fine tuning it for her specific needs will take a few visits - usually within the first 6 months. Once she’s happy with how she feels, ask the team to make a note of those settings. It’s worth having a setup that can be used again if an annual visit involves changes that don’t agree with her.
I had an annual a couple of months back and saw a slightly over zealous tech who insisted some of my settings were pointless and changed them to what she thought they should be. The result had a huge effect on me - I could barely string a sentence together without getting breathless and felt all round terrible.
Had to call the clinic later the same day to speak to them, asked me to go straight back up, reloaded my original settings and I was fine almost immediately.
I have complete heart block so I’m very sensitive to even the most subtle of tweaks.
Bedside unit downloads and transmits to the lab nightly between 2-5 am.
The team will call you if something pings as needing attention.
I m on 6 monthly phone calls and an annual update in clinic. It s not unusual to get called in if it s an urgent software patch.
Just to add - fine tuning it for her specific needs will take a few visits - usually within the first 6 months. Once she’s happy with how she feels, ask the team to make a note of those settings. It’s worth having a setup that can be used again if an annual visit involves changes that don’t agree with her.
I had an annual a couple of months back and saw a slightly over zealous tech who insisted some of my settings were pointless and changed them to what she thought they should be. The result had a huge effect on me - I could barely string a sentence together without getting breathless and felt all round terrible.
Had to call the clinic later the same day to speak to them, asked me to go straight back up, reloaded my original settings and I was fine almost immediately.
I have complete heart block so I’m very sensitive to even the most subtle of tweaks.
Edited by pidsy on Sunday 12th July 10:59
Penny Whistle said:
What limitations and controls are in place to govern such alterations?
As the lovely lovely Mayor of London would say - what exactly do you mean by that?If I'm catching your drift correctly, you are concerned that someone with malicious intent could have a play remotely?
That would be seen as very naughty and should be very difficult to do.
However, the NHS is not know for having much capability or competence in the IT safety world, so I guess ask the consultant in clinic for details would be your best bet initially.
Interesting question btw.
I always thought it was amazing when the ambulance would turn up before my Father-in-law had noticed he had a problem from doing something stupid like overexerting himself.
The medical staff would turn up and cart him off or tell him off, happened 2 or 3 times now, once from changing a tire and passing out next to a friend who doesn't have very good vision and didn't notice, another time they found him in a forest with his chainsaw, and that set it off (playing with chainsaw now banned), very smart kit.
The medical staff would turn up and cart him off or tell him off, happened 2 or 3 times now, once from changing a tire and passing out next to a friend who doesn't have very good vision and didn't notice, another time they found him in a forest with his chainsaw, and that set it off (playing with chainsaw now banned), very smart kit.
For active devices (Pacemakers and Implantable Defibrillators) the most that can be done remotely is resetting the time stamp for downloads. Anything else has to be done in clinic using a specialised programming device. It’s entirely feasible that any settings could be changed nowadays but it isn’t permitted for exactly the reasons I think you’re concerned about. There are some implantable monitoring devices where settings can be changed remotely. How do I know - been faffing around with these things for over 30 years.
Gassing Station | Health Matters | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff