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ICD and Remote Monitoring Technologies Keep Semi-Retired
Physician on the Golf Course
 The
news that he needed an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD)
reached
him on the golf course via cell phone in November of 2000. That’s
where Dr.
Paul Zanetti, officially “retired” since July 2000
from a distinguished 30-year
career as a neurosurgeon, prefers to spend his time. Another important
part of
his life is his part-time work as a medical consultant and researcher.
Dr. Zanetti
has lived in Corpus Christi, Texas with his wife Carole since 1972,
after
completing medical school in his native Michigan and his residency
in
neurological surgery at the University of Pittsburgh.
After a heart attack in 1995 at age 55, Dr. Zanetti needed double
bypass surgery,
a treatment option, he explained, “definitely not available
when I started out in
cardio-thoracic surgery as a resident.” Five years after
the heart attack, an event
monitor he wore for three days helped diagnose life-threatening
episodes of
ventricular tachycardia (VT), which Dr. Zanetti had been experiencing
as
“unusual episodes of fatigue and a run-down feeling” since
mid-2000. On
November 3, 2000, he received a Medtronic GEM® II DR ICD,
a device that paces
his heart or delivers therapeutic shocks to restore his heart to
a normal rhythm.
“I’m in love with this machine, this technology keeps me around,” said
Dr. Zanetti. Since the implant, his ICD has delivered therapeutic
shocks on two
occasions, one not surprisingly on the golf course. He remembers
how
worried his golf buddies were when the therapy delivered by the
device caused
him to briefly fall down on the green. Dr. Zanetti reassured them
that he was
fine precisely because the device had delivered therapy to disrupt
a lifethreatening
episode of VT.
In May of 2003, Dr. Hans Moore, his electrophysiologist from Cardiology
Associates of Corpus Christi (CACC), prescribed Dr. Zanetti the
Medtronic
CareLink® Network, an Internet-based remote monitoring service
for
Medtronic cardiac device patients. Using the portable Medtronic
CareLink
Monitor, he can transmit his device data at the clinic’s
directive via a standard
phone line, either from home or while he travels. Clinic staff
download and
interpret the reports via the Internet and advise him promptly
if further action
is needed, or if all is well.
Currently, Dr. Zanetti follows a schedule of two in-office check-ups
a year, along
with monthly remote interrogations with the Medtronic CareLink
Monitor,
until his medications can be adjusted appropriately. “There
is absolutely no
downside to remote monitoring with the Medtronic CareLink Monitor,” said
Dr.
Zanetti. “Once a month I spend three to five minutes transmitting
my device
data, which is extremely easy. When I travel, the small monitor
adds only about
a pound or two to my bag. Above all, it gives me great peace of
mind to have
ready access to care by my clinic, no matter where I am. No waiting
at the
doctor’s office, no worry about how I can get to the office,
or even to an
emergency room, while I’m in a different city. It’s
like a security blanket.”
This story recounts the experience of a patient who is
using the Medtronic CareLink Monitor for remote device follow-up.
Medtronic, Inc. invited him to share this story cordially.
Please bear in mind that this experience is specific to this
patient. Results vary, not every response is the same.
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