Vim & Vigor - Fall 2011 - Community Healthcare - (Page 56)

Big The By ElisE sims New pacemaker technology allows MRI for diagnostics Medtronic’s Revo MRI SureScan pacemaker is safe for use around or in MRI equipment. P Picture atients with new pacemakers, like 88-year-old Henry Schoon of Crete, Ill., no longer need to stay away from MRI diagnostic imaging tests for fear that their device may malfunction or cause an irregular heartbeat. Schoon is just one of many patients to receive a new type of pacemaker, one that is designed specifically to accommodate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment. “I had it done and stayed overnight,” Schoon says about the procedure last February to correct his bradycardia, or low heart rate. “The care I had at Community Hospital was very good. I was confident in my doctors. I like to play golf and walk and I expect to be able to continue with these activities now.” Electrophysiologists on staff at Community Hospital in Munster were among the first in the country to implant the Medtronic Revo MRI SureScan device which, unlike other pacemakers, is safe for use in or around an MRI. “It has been estimated that up to 50 percent of patients with standard cardiac rhythm devices who need an MRI aren’t able to get one,” says electrophysiologist Mark Mitchell, D.O., FACC. Until now, if patients with pacemakers required wholebody imaging, CT scans were the only acceptable alternative, Mitchell says. But CT scans use low-dose radiation to produce images, which aren’t high-definition, making it more difficult to diagnose conditions such as cancer and stroke, he says. undergo an MRI. An MRI is the standard of care in soft tissue imaging, which allows doctors to see internal organs, joints and muscles in order to better diagnose patients, he says. About 1.5 million Americans have pacemakers, devices that send electrical pulses to the heart to help maintain John H. Burke, a regular rhythm, according to mediM.D., cardiac cal technology developer Medtronic. electrophysiologist Medical imaging and electronic implantable devices such as pacemakers are important technological advances, particularly in older, more fragile patients, according to John H. Burke, M.D., the electrophysiologist who implanted Schoon’s pacemaker. Over a lifetime, more patients will need an MRI than not, Burke Mark Mitchell, says. Now, there is an alternative D.O., cardiac pacemaker that is safe for patients electrophysiologist undergoing MRIs. This particular pacemaker functions the same as other devices that keep the heart beating at a steady rate except that the leads—the wires that are attached to the heart—have a different design feature. The pacemaker Revo MRI SureScan can be programmed before a patient undergoes an MRI scan so it will not interfere with the device’s function. Online Making MRis an OptiOn again This particular device is the first to receive FDA approval for the MRI environment, Mitchell says. It offers advantages to both doctors and their patients who need to For more information about new devices and surgical techniques offered by the hospitals of Community Healthcare System, visit us at www.comhs.org. How New Technology Can Change Your Life 56 Vim & Vigor • Fall 2 011 http://www.comhs.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Fall 2011 - Community Healthcare

Vim & Vigor - Fall 2011 - Community Healthcare
Contents
Community Message
Community Briefs
Special: A Healthy Weight for Life
Healthy Hues
The New Survivors
First (Aid) Things First
Find Your Groove
Cover Story: Carrie Underwood
Stay in Circulation
‘X’ Marks the Spot
Pregnancy Predictors
Play It Safe
Before the Fall
SPOTLIGHT ON: St. Catherine Hospital
SPOTLIGHT ON: St. Mary Medical Center
SPOTLIGHT ON: Community Hospital
The Big Picture

Vim & Vigor - Fall 2011 - Community Healthcare