Permanent Pacemaker Complications

A pacemaker is a medical device that controls abnormal heartbeat by using electrical pulses to maintain a constant, healthy heartbeat, around 60 beats per second. Pacemakers are viable treatment options for patients who have bracycardia, tachycardia and a number of heart diseases and valve problems. While the incidence of complications during or after pacemaker implantation is quite low, according to Heartpoint, they can still occur.

Pacemaker Syndrome

• The heart has four chambers, two ventricles and two atria. The ventricles are walled thickly with muscle and are responsible for pumping blood out of the heart and into the body. The atria receive blood coming into the heart from the rest of the body and act as a holding chamber, releasing the blood into the ventricles for dispersion throughout the body. When an individual suffers from pacemaker syndrome, the pacemaker stimulates only specific chambers of the heart. The heart, therefore, does not work in a coordinated fashion; often, the natural electrical functioning of the heart is reversed.

Generator Failure

• Generator failure is a condition that can occur long after a pacemaker is implanted into a patient. When the pacemaker generator--the part of the pacemaker that produces the electrical pulse that causes the heart to beat--malfunctions, generator failure occurs. The most common cause of generator failure is blunt force trauma, such as car accidents.

Surgical Aftereffects

• Side effects or surgical malfunction during the implantation of a pacemaker is extremely rare. There is some bleeding that is common during and after the procedure; a tube is often placed in the chest if bleeding is extreme to prevent the lungs from collapsing. The leads of a pacemaker--wires that attach to the heart to transmit electrical signals--may cause a inflammation around the heart; however, this inflammation is mild and lasts only a few days.