You should immediately consult with your physician to determine if your model is part of the recall, if your defibrillator is defective, and whether the risk of surgery is better than the risk of keeping your defective Guidant defibrillator unit.

Most pacemakers will last between 8 and 10 years, after which the entire pacemaker or its battery and/or wire(s) need to be replaced. Replacing a pacemaker may be done on an outpatient basis or may include an overnight stay in the hospital.

Medtronic actually refuses to call its actions a recall. Instead, on October 15, 2007, Medtronic issued a "voluntary market suspension" to remove its line of Sprint Fidelis defibrillation leads from the market. Medtronic stated that the leads are prone to fracturing which can cause the defibrillator to deliver unnecessary shocks or not operate at all.

No. The Sprint Fidelis leads were connected to defibrillators made by Medtronic as well as other defibrillator manufacturers such as Guidant and St. Jude, and implanted in or sold to an estimated 268,000 patients worldwide since 2004 -- with roughly 235,000 patients still relying on these implanted leads.

Your heart has an electrical system that helps it beat at a regular speed or pace. If your heart’s pace slows or becomes uneven, you may feel faint, dizzy, lightheaded, short-of-breath or run-down at times. A pacemaker is a small electronic device implanted inside your body that will generate electrical signals similar to the heart’s natural signals and will keep your heart beating at the right pace.

It is estimated that there are 29,000 pacemaker units in question. Out of those, there have been 45 reported failures and at least two deasths linked to the units. If no other failures occur, that would mean that 1 out of 15,000 pacemaker defibrillators could result in death, and 1 out of 650 could fail. If more reports come in, the failure rate would turn out to be higher.

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ICD (implantable defibrillator) is an electronic device. The device is used to shock the heart back into a healthy rhythm. The pacemaker is implanted in the body (in the chest area) and is used to prevent cardiac arrest from severe ventricular tachycardia (a quickly fluttering heart beat). The device works through an electrode that is inserted into the heart. The wire (lead) is connected to a tiny computer in the defibrillator.

We are not sure but a customer reported that Medtronics, a company that manufactures defibulators, said it was not affected. (Richard Dawson) For a pacemaker we don't know.

A slow heart rhythm, or bradycardia, can be treated with a permanent pacemaker. This sophisticated device is only about the size of a silver dollar coin and is implanted beneath the skin in the upper chest. The procedure is done under local anesthesia. The pacemaker lies dormant as long as the heart is beating normally. However, if the heart should beat inappropriately slowly, the pacemaker "kicks in" and paces the heart.

We strongly urge you to consult your doctor before using the Hic-Cup if you have a pacemaker or other electrical or medical implant of any kind.

The programmable pump will not be damaged by therapy pulses from the pacemaker or ICD. However, it is recommended to keep the programming head for the pacemaker or ICD at least 10cm (4 inches) away from the pump to minimise any potential interference. It also is important to keep the programming head of the pump programmer away from the pacemaker or ICD because the programming head contains a large magnet.

Absolutely. Never withhold defibrillation use from a person in cardiac arrest. If the person in question meets all the criteria of cardiac arrest (unresponsive, not breathing, no pulse) they are essentially "dead."

In many cases, both the pacemaker and the neurostimulator can be mutually compatible. Appropriate testing, placement and programming of the devices can help in achieving mutual compatibility. Under certain conditions, it is possible that the pacemaker or ICD could detect the output stimuli from a neurostimulator. This would cause inappropriate pacemaker or ICD operation during the time the stimuli are detected and possibly cause the delivery of an inadvertent shock.

TENS is not recommended for patients with know heart disease without physical evaluation of possible risk. TENS devices can affect the operation of demand type cardiac pacemakers. So it not suitable for those using a demand type pacemaker. And do not stimulate over the eyes or carotid sinus nerves. If you have epilepsy or heart disease please seek medical advice before use .

Yes, yes, yes, and yes if the pacemaker is shielded. If it is 10 years or older, you should consult your physician or pacemaker manufacturer.

Most devices will last several years, after which the battery or pulse generator will need to be replaced. Replacing a  generator may be done on an outpatient basis or may include an overnight stay in the hospital.

Pacemaker implantation is not open-heart surgery. It’s a minor procedure that’s done in the operating room or cardiac catheterization lab. You will receive an injection of a local anesthetic to numb the insertion area. Since you will be awake during the procedure, you may be asked to assist the physician by taking deep breaths. An incision will be made in your skin below your collarbone. (Pacemakers can be inserted on either the right or left side.

first, you may feel the weight of the pacemaker in your chest. However, over time, most people become accustomed to the pacemaker. The generator is very small, about the size of two silver dollars stacked on top of each other, and weighs about an ounce or less, depending on the make and model of the device.

When you lose a tooth, it is often best for your oral health to have it replaced. Missing teeth can affect your bite as well as your ability to chew and speak. Their loss can increase the burden on your remaining teeth as well as affect your appearance and your self-confidence.

Manufacturers of medical devices have a duty to patients to produce safe products. In lawsuits against Medtronic prepared by Lieff Cabraser, our clients allege that Medtronic misrepresented the safety of the Sprint Fidelis lead. Hundreds of injuries linked to Sprint Fidelis heart defibrillator wires had been reported to the FDA as of the end of 2006. The high and early failure rate of Medtronic Sprint Fidelis leads was also reported in a medical journal in 2006.

Coronary heart disease is the single most common cause of death in the United States. Sudden death, which frequently stems from heart arrhythmias, is estimated to account for approximately half of all deaths from coronary heart disease. As a preventive measure, an ICD may be implanted in a patient's chest to monitor heart rhythm. If the ICD subsequently detects a life-threatening arrhythmia, the ICD will deliver an electrical shock in order to restore a life-sustaining heart rhythm.