5-377.y:

A special device was implanted in your heart.

The special device can, for example, be a cardiac pacemaker, a defibrillator or an event recorder.

A pacemaker is composed of a housing with a battery and one or more long cables. The housing is located on the right or left side of the chest under the skin. The ends of the cables are located at certain points in the heart. A pacemaker can release electric current from the heart and thus trigger the heartbeat. Thanks to the pacemaker, the heart should beat regularly at a normal pace.

A defibrillator is composed of a housing with a battery and one or more long cables. The housing is usually located on the left side of the chest under the skin. The ends of the cables are located at certain points in the heart. A defibrillator can give off very strong electric current to the heart in an emergency. If the heart is beating very fast for instance, it may not be able to pump blood properly anymore. Thanks to a current surge, the heart should beat regularly at a normal pace.

The heart pumps blood through the body. Inside the heart are 4 chambers. There are 2 heart atria and 2 ventricles. Both heart atria and both ventricles are separated from each other by a partition. The electrical currents flow through the heart. The heart's electrical activity causes the heart muscle to contract. It begins at a site in your right atrium. Initially the electrical activity spreads to both atria. The electrical activity then flows on via a sort of cable to the ventricles.

An event recorder is a small device that records and saves the heart’s electrical activity over a period of time. Over a period of time, the event recorder can be used to check whether the heart’s electrical activity is irregular. Sometimes the device can also be switched on when an irregular heartbeat is noticed.