Welding after getting a pacemaker

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TomB
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Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by TomB »

Has anyone done any welding after getting a pacemaker. I did not ask the Dr about that before I had the surgery then I read the take home instructions and found on the 'do not do' list welding and skiing. I got the pacemaker so I could get back into skiing. Yesterday when I asked at the initial follow up appointment I asked the RN specialist and she acted like she had never heard the word welding before. She actually was more open to skiing as she immediately said that the restriction on skiing probably meant it should not be taken up as a new endeavor. Slower skiing like an experienced senior would likely indulge would probably not involve the hard falls that the instructions were trying to prohibit. As for welding she was going to ask the manufacturing rep and get back to me yesterday. I have not yet heard from her. I am mostly a TIG welder and I don't think there would be enough RF action in a TIG weld to affect anything. I will wait for her response but I thought I'd ask just to see what others had found.
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Steggy
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Steggy »

TomB wrote: Thu Dec 01, 2022 9:18 am Has anyone done any welding after getting a pacemaker...I am mostly a TIG welder and I don't think there would be enough RF action in a TIG weld to affect anything.

I had a Boston Scientific pacemaker for about four years. The instructions that came with it advised against arc welding, but were vague on that account. As I do a fair amount of (mostly MIG) welding, I was concerned about it and called Boston Scientific for clarification. I was told that stick and MIG welding *might* cause a transient pacemaker malfunction, but that the medical risk was low.

On the other hand, the gentleman with whom I was speaking evidently knew something about welding and strongly advised to not do TIG welding. The reason he gave was the high frequency radiation from the arc *might* cause the pacemaker to malfunction to a degree that Boston Scientific considered medically risky.

In September, my pacemaker was replaced with an “intelligent” cardioverter, which is a combination pacemaker and defibrillator. The instructions list arc welding of all types as “not recommended.” I don’t know exactly what would happen if the cardioverter were exposed to the radiation that all electric arcs emit.
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GlennW
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by GlennW »

A friend (Dr.) just had a Pacemaker installed a couple weeks ago. I had lunch with him yesterday and he said he'd be selling the TIG welder that he bought earlier this year, as he could no longer use it due to the Pacemaker.
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liveaboard
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by liveaboard »

In that case, I'm definitely NOT EVER going to get a pacemaker.

Unless shielded ones are available?
Bob D.
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Bob D. »

Well, make a vest from metal window screen or go medieval with chain mail and ground it. Then you are a walking Faraday cage!
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Bob D. »

And to add. At my work it is required to have signs posted in the magnaflux area that people with Pacemakers are not to be near the equipment.
No such requirement for either the robotic welding stations or the manual TIG, MiG areas, nor in the Maintenance shop with plasma, stick, Mig or Tig.
3/4" Juliet II 0-4-0
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3/4" Hunslet 4-6-0
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Bill Shields
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Bill Shields »

under all circumstances, I would avoid welding while skiing.... :mrgreen:

and if you need a pacemaker and don't get one...then most likely you will not need to worry about either welding or skiing
Too many things going on to bother listing them.
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Steggy
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Steggy »

liveaboard wrote: Thu Dec 01, 2022 1:52 pmIn that case, I'm definitely NOT EVER going to get a pacemaker.

Not a problem. Pacemaker, cardioverter, doctor...all they do is postpone the inevitable. :D
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Steggy
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Steggy »

Bill Shields wrote: Thu Dec 01, 2022 3:44 pm under all circumstances, I would avoid welding while skiing.... :mrgreen:

Good advice. It’s hard to get a smooth, penetrating weld when your hands are also holding ski poles.
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Steggy
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by Steggy »

Bob D. wrote: Thu Dec 01, 2022 2:00 pm And to add. At my work it is required to have signs posted in the magnaflux area that people with Pacemakers are not to be near the equipment.
No such requirement for either the robotic welding stations or the manual TIG, MiG areas, nor in the Maintenance shop with plasma, stick, Mig or Tig.

The energy of arc radiation dissipates with the square of distance. It wouldn't be a problem for a passer-by, but would be for the weldor, since he/she would be less than arm’s length away from the arc.
Last edited by Steggy on Sat Dec 03, 2022 7:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by curtis cutter »

I looked into this some for a friend who recently had one implanted. He welds all the time so it was obviously a concern.

To me it appears (my opinion as a 45 year EMT only here, and by no means a cardiologist) the major issue is not that it will cause the unit to misfire but that it can longer "read" the heart rhythm. Very similar to when we would respond to cardiac calls, when we used a defibrillator or heart monitor we had to frantically unplug device near the patient in order to not have the rhythm overridden by the 60 cycle artifact on the screen. Electric blankets were great for this as our cables would lay across the blanket.

I have heard the latest version of the AED's are refined to the point where CPR does not have to be stopped while the analyzing is being done by the machine. Doing compressions themselves can be seen on the screens of defibrillators currently.

Some articles suggest if you feel any discomfort while welding to stop immediately and let the device do an interpretation of the actual heart rhythm.

One thing I have found interesting is that with so many government agencies controlling the workplace, finding information on this subject is a difficult task. One thing is for certain though, we live in a time when advances in technology come at a pretty fast clip.
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liveaboard
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Re: Welding after getting a pacemaker

Post by liveaboard »

Wow; real info!
Even though I don't need a pacemaker (yet), I find all of that interesting.
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