What Causes Body Ache And Weakness After Insertion Of Pacemaker?

Posted on Wed, 15 Jan 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 15 Jan 2014 Answered on

Fri, 31 Jan 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : Hi, my dad had a pacemaker put in early october and a few days later he was complaining of pain through out his whole body. I thought that this could just be to him recovering. now almost 4 months later he's still the same and he sleeps a lot. when he wakes he is still sore and feels like he needs to sleep again. Just the other day a new symptom appeared and one of his legs started to give way. He had his pacemaker checked a month after surgery and that was fine. Can you please guide me as to what i should do next

Answered by Dr. Praveen (2 hours later)

Brief Answer: Could get his labs done Detailed Answer: Hi, Since his cardiac paremeters are normal & his pace maker is perfect, his body pains are not related to pacemaker implantations. ff I were to be his treating doctor I would check his vitamin D & calcium levels(get his labs) and corrected them if required. In case they are normal ask for an orthopedic evaluation. Hope this answers your query. Thanks

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Praveen (1 hour later)

Thank you for that i will speak to his GP. My worry is could there have been cross contamination and he's picked up something during surgery? he had his bloods tested a few weeks after surgery with his GP, and they seemed to be fine, but in your opinion what should he normally get tested for after surgery? If he gets bloods done do they normally test for everything? Thank you in advance for your help XXXX

Answered by Dr. Praveen (2 hours later)

Brief Answer: Tests are done to rule out infection Detailed Answer: Thanks for writing me back. I completely understand your concern. Cross contamination during surgery is very uncommon since the procedure is done with aseptic precautions and chances of transmission is almost nil. Since the blood test are normal infection is unlikely. Since you father has body ache post surgery blood tests were done to rule out the possibility of some lurking infection (like endocarditis), otherwise they are not done routinely. Was a blood culture done?What was the report? If blood culture is negative this is highly unlikely due to infection/contamination. Hope this answers your query.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Shanthi.E