Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Defibrillator brings patient peace of mind

Wireless medicine

Richard Brian

Billy Joe Hill talks with cardiovascular electrophysiologist Erik Sirulnick about future generations of cardiac defibrillators at St. Rose Dominican Hospital - San Martin Campus.

Click to enlarge photo

Billy Joe Hill holds a wireless Medtronic Vision 3D defibrillator like the one that was implanted into his chest.

Billy Joe Hill, 57, is thinking of playing golf for the first time in years, while his wife has eagerly awaited the resumption of one of his long-dormant chores: vacuuming.

In September, Hill was able to consider resuming long-lost tasks after a defibrillator was implanted into his chest.

It was a first for Nevada. The Medtronic Vision 3D device automatically collects information on Hill's heart 24 hours a day and can relay that information to doctors instantly through wireless communication.

Cardiovascular electrophysiologist Erik Sirulnick predicted the technology will save lives.

"We can be notified not only in emergencies, but if certain parameters are going the wrong way, it could pre-empt a clinical crisis," he said. "It might allow us to detect an arrhythmia that may be asymptomatic, which may cause a stroke."

Hill had suffered from heart problems since the late 1980s, when a physical in West Africa during his employment with the U.S. State Department discovered a bad heartbeat. A cluster of nerves on the left side of his heart grew weaker through the years, culminating this July with a heart attack. Sudden irregular heartbeats when he did something as innocuous as sitting down left him fearful.

Sirulnick, St. Rose Dominican Hospital's director of electrophysiology, saw Hill as the perfect candidate for the nearly two-year-old technology. To send information, the implanted device must be in range of a special receiver, which can be placed in the home. These automatically transmit data through Internet or phone communications to a secure database.

Sirulnick said this could transform care in rural areas or for those less mobile. It can also allow patients who travel frequently more peace of mind.

"It can let a physician know how a patient is doing on a regular basis instead of having to wait until the patient chooses to have the device checked," Sirulnick said.

The state-of-the-art device is also capable of defibrillating someone in cardiac arrest, he said.

Hill had the hour-and-a-half procedure done Sept. 22 and felt the results that evening.

"I felt more relaxed," he said. "I was breathing better. I had better circulation immediately."

Two weeks later he was in the lab, where he saw the device shoot out page after page of reports. While he found that somewhat spooky, he credited the defibrillator with easing his worries.

"Suppose you have a little bit of pain or an irregular heartbeat," Hill said. "I'm confident this would pick it up and report it, so I don't worry all the time now."

And his chronic fatigue has vanished as well.

"We intend to travel now that I feel better and do some road trips too," Hill said.

Since Hill's implant, Sirulnick has overseen the implantation of two more wireless devices at the San Martin campus. He expects the technology to do even more in the future once further uses are proven safe and approved by the FDA.

Hill, who was initially apprehensive about the implant, encouraged others to go ahead with the procedure.

"It's made a world of difference in only a few weeks," he said. "If people don't do it because they're afraid, that's bad. It's not any worse than going to a dentist."

Dave Clark can be reached at 990-2677 or [email protected].

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy