My name is Sam and I joined here a few months ago after being told that I'll be having an ICD unit fitted. Well that unit was fitted yesterday (29th of September, the day before my 63rd birthday) and all went well and I came home on the same day.
Can I please ask a question. I know all about having to now use a mobile phone in my right hand and right ear but my question is to do with using an electronic tablet. Are these devices safe to use and are there any precautions I should take when using one?
I have to tell you that as I'm lying on my bed typing this message on my 7" tablet I have a hardback book resting on my chest in order to prevent any magnetic interference between the tablet and the ICD unit.
Is this a necessary precaution or am I being silly?
Thank you all.
Sam 👏
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MyGeneration
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I use a 10" tablet with no problem, but always use my phone on my right-hand side. A book, (unless it has a metal jacket!) will not provide much screening.
Hi Sam. I hope you're coping well since your ICD implantation. Mine was implanted last Nov. I still use my tablet and phone, also Bluetooth headphones, but they all just need to be kept a minimum of 6 inches away from your ICD. My little girl used to always cuddle me with her Bluetooth headphones on, but now has to take them off first.
Hi Sam. Not silly at all, but you may be being over-cautious. I've had my ICD 5 years now, and always use my phone to my left ear, which often means it's less than 6 inches from the ICD, and haven't had any problems (I went deaf in my right ear 3 years ago, so can't change now anyway!). I also spend a lot of time with my laptop in my lap. The general rule is don't keep your phone in your left breast pocket, so if your tablet is on your chest for a long time, then the book is a good idea, but a magazine might be more comfortable
Questions about living with an ICD are NEVER silly; it`s how we learn. Mine was in 2011 and I`m sitting here with my laptop on my lap (duh, where else!).
With technology advancing, it`s difficult to give a straight answer. The hospital where it was implanted? A Defibrillator Support Group; see online. The BHF?
My home modem monitors my heart rate...and ICD. Any interference.....I get a call from The Freeman (Newcastle) telling me that summat`s wrong and to `get my ass into the centre`.
Bloody marvellous people.
Your question will be added to the next agenda when we `defibbers` meet to share stories; some of us (actually, a helluva lot of us) nationally are having issues with our Blue Badges and maybe a national campaign will clarify it. Til then keep electronic gizmos about 2 feet from you; forget the book, just another `load` on your chest.
Frank, it was the Freeman where I had my ICD fitted. I was given a Samsung A10E mobile phone which acts as my monitor. It has been specially adapted as a monitor and can't be used as a regular phone. At 2am it takes a reading of my heart's activities for that day and then sends details, if need be, to a central hub. It's all incredibly clever stuff.
And when it comes to technology I'm as thick as can be.
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