Surgeon allowed to have ICD ?

[James35]

Is a surgeon legally allowed to have an ICD and perform surgery?

I know you are not allowed to be a semi-truck driver with an ICD, but if you have long QT type 3 and an ICD implanted with no history of episodes, are you legally (or by any other restrictions) allowed to perform surgeries with an ICD implanted?

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[Winged Scapula]

I'm not aware of any such restrictions (remember, you are not alone in the OR, if a problem were to occur, as opposed to the truck driver) per se but there might be issues with cautery.

 

[Buzz Me]

Are you asking for medical advice here?

 

[tussy]

not sure if the cautery would affect it. Cautery routinely passes through the surgeon, most of the time we are unaware of it. I recently got electrocuted in the OR and have done a bit of reading around it. Not sure if there could be some potential to activate the ICD. Interesting question.

 

[James35]

not sure if the cautery would affect it. Cautery routinely passes through the surgeon, most of the time we are unaware of it. I recently got electrocuted in the OR and have done a bit of reading around it. Not sure if there could be some potential to activate the ICD. Interesting question.

Yeah, this is what I was wondering about. I wasn't aware that some of the electricity or whatever passed through the surgeon doing electrocautery. I know one of the restriction is your not suppose to have surgery with electrocautery performed on you (as a person with an ICD). I'll have to ask the electrophysiologist if he thinks it would be a problem. (They tell you to avoid all these things, but then when you have a situation that is unavoidable they are always like.... oh that will be fine)

 

[tussy]

When I got electrocuted I met with the guy that sells the electrocautery device. They gave me a great paper (if i still had it i would send it to you). Basically the current often passes thru the surgeon but it is not the kind of current that she cause any problem, however, occasionally there is a leak of the "bad" kind of current that can become problematic. I would talk to both the makers of the cautery machines to get their literature on the subject as well as the electrophysiologist.

BTW you shouldn't be looking for personal medical advice on this forum. But still, interesting question.

 

[45408]

Just an aside - electrocution is fatal. The term implies that you died as a result of it. If you didn't die, then it was just an electric shock.

 

[tussy]

Just an aside - electrocution is fatal. The term implies that you died as a result of it. If you didn't die, then it was just an electric shock.

Ok, i got an electric shock, it sent me to the floor with some generallized twitching, a deep hole on my finger (entry point) and larger burn on my hip where i was leaning against the stirrup (exit point). I had a brief run of a tachy arrhythmia. I have no memory of the event (one second i was mobilizing the splenic flexure, next i was on the floor wondering what happened). I did scrub back in and finish the case.

 

[Winged Scapula]

Ok, i got an electric shock, it sent me to the floor with some generallized twitching, a deep hole on my finger (entry point) and larger burn on my hip where i was leaning against the stirrup (exit point). I had a brief run of a tachy arrhythmia. I have no memory of the event (one second i was mobilizing the splenic flexure, next i was on the floor wondering what happened). I did scrub back in and finish the case.

Strong work sista!

 

[45408]

Ok, i got an electric shock, it sent me to the floor with some generallized twitching, a deep hole on my finger (entry point) and larger burn on my hip where i was leaning against the stirrup (exit point). I had a brief run of a tachy arrhythmia. I have no memory of the event (one second i was mobilizing the splenic flexure, next i was on the floor wondering what happened). I did scrub back in and finish the case.

Needle tip?

 

[Trifling Jester]

Cautery shouldn't affect an ICD for a surgeon operating. Extremity operations on patients with ICDs don't even need their devices turned off, but are often turned off anyway. I don't know if there's required reporting for ICD placement in a surgeon but it would vary by state anyway. It might also make a difference if it was for primary or secondary prevention..

 

[Miami_med]

I know a surgeon with an ICD who hasn't had a problem.

 

[funkydrmonkey]

My attending and fellow got shocked when they were operating on a patient with an ICD, because the bovie caused the ICD to discharge.

 

[tussy]

Needle tip?

Nope, and I was double gloved. They sent the cautery machine out for repair as they suspected there was some sort of "short circuit". An incident report got filed and I had to meet with the "occupational safety officer". Not sure what happened with the machine after that. The rep told me that it isn't uncommon.