Every person living with a pacemaker is unique, and the reasons for their device can vary. The most common reason is to address an arrhythmia—an abnormal or irregular heart rhythm. A pacemaker can also help the chambers of a weak heart to beat “in sync” so it can efficiently pump blood throughout the body.
These heart issues come with uncomfortable and potentially deadly physical symptoms, including breathing difficulties, fainting spells, and constant tiredness, that diminish the quality of life. Fortunately, a pacemaker can help to alleviate and even rectify them. In fact, most pacemaker recipients feel like they have a re-energized life! But what happens when these symptoms return, even when you have a pacemaker? Depending on your cardiovascular issues and health situation, they may be expected, but they could mean that your pacemaker is malfunctioning.
Let us look at the signs of a possible pacemaker malfunction to watch for and the actions you should take.
Common Physical Signs Your Pacemaker May Be Malfunctioning
Hopefully, your pacemaker alleviated the life-limiting symptoms that come with heart rhythm issues. However, if you suddenly start experiencing any of the physical symptoms below, they could be a sign that your pacemaker is malfunctioning:
Irregular Heart Rate and Heartbeats
Heart rhythm is the pattern of heartbeats, while heart rate reflects the number of these heartbeats in a minute. Both are important indicators of healthy heart function. Check your pulse for a slow heart rate, a racing heart rate, or an irregular heart rate that fluctuates between slow and fast heartbeats. You may feel racing, slow, or skipped heartbeat as signs of irregular heartbeats. This may mean your pacemaker is malfunctioning and not regulating your heart.
Dizziness, Lightheadedness, and Fainting
A pacemaker helps to regulate hearth rhythm, but if you are experiencing frequent dizzy spells and/or lightheadedness, these could be signs that your pacemaker is not maintaining a proper heart rhythm or heartbeat. A drop in heart rate or irregular heartbeats can cause a lack of blood flow to the brain, which can lead to fainting or near-fainting.
Shortness of Breath
Shortness of breath and other breathing issues are often symptoms of heart issues. Once you have a pacemaker, this can be a sign the device is not regulating your heart rate correctly. That is because a weak heartbeat can limit the heart’s ability to pump and circulate oxygen-rich blood throughout the body.
Fatigue or Weakness
If your heart is not adequately pumping blood out to your body, you may feel sluggish and tired. That is why constant tiredness is a common symptom in those with heart issues. If you’re feeling weak or fatigued even with a pacemaker, it may be that your pacemaker is ineffective at keeping up with your body’s needs, leading to low energy levels.
Swelling
Swelling in the legs, ankles, or abdomen can indicate heart failure, meaning that the pacemaker isn’t supporting proper heart function. Swelling at or around the pacemaker site can be a concerning sign that something is wrong with the pacemaker itself.
Hiccups or Muscle Twitching
The heart is essentially an electrical system, and a pacemaker works by connecting to this electrical system via wires (called leads) and sending electrical pulses from the device’s pulse generator to regulate the rate and rhythm of heartbeat. However, if you experience muscle twitching or frequent hiccups, these could be an indicator that your pacemaker’s electrical pulses are also stimulating nearby muscles in the chest. This may be caused by a defective lead.
Chest Pain or Discomfort
You can experience different forms of chest pain with a pacemaker, but not all are signs of device malfunction. Soreness, stiffness, or discomfort around the pacemaker site may dissipate as the incision heals, though some degree of pain may not go away. This pain could be due to scaring or pacemaker placement and has nothing to do with pacemaker functionality. However, if your pacemaker’s electrical pulses are “misfiring” and stimulating nearby muscles, this can cause chest pain. If the pain feels like a weight on your chest, heavy pressure, tightness, or squeezing and radiates down your arm and/or back, this could be a sign of a serious device malfunction affecting the heart or even a heart attack.
Device Alerts and Signals of Pacemaker Issues
While the above physical symptoms can be a sign that there is an issue with your pacemaker, often the pacemaker itself will send an alert if it is experiencing a problem. Much like a smartphone, the mini-computer in your chest can receive software updates, be remotely programmed and monitored, and send out notifications of low battery life and other issues. Your doctor and device monitoring team conduct regular pacemaker checks based on the performance and lifespan of your device, and they can receive remote notifications from the pacemaker to help them catch any issues.
Pacemakers provide warning signals before the battery runs out, and these signals can be unique to each device. Be sure you are familiar with your device’s battery lifespan and low battery signal so you know what to watch for. Early battery failure could mean the battery or device is defective. In this case, the low battery warning signal may fail to trigger, and your “warning signal” may be those physical symptoms, like irregular heartbeat, slowed heart rate, or fainting.
When to Contact Your Doctor About Pacemaker Issues
Your remote monitoring team should catch any irregularities with your heart or pacemaker and receive alerts from the device. This pacemaker monitoring, along with regular check-ups with your cardiologist, can help ensure your pacemaker is functioning properly.
If you have any of the aforementioned physical symptoms, contact your doctor to share what you’re experiencing and see what they recommend. If you experience the symptoms of severe chest pain, difficulty breathing, or fainting, call 911 for emergency medical help right away.
Want to learn more about pacemaker functionality? Tap into additional resources and information through the Pacemaker Club, on online community where you can connect with pacemaker recipients and experts to ask questions, share experiences, and support one another as you navigate your pacemaker-powered life.