Just two weeks after receiving a pacemaker in May, 77-year-old John Kebert was able to get back to his hikes he had missed so much. The Albertan is one of 15 people at Calgary's Foothills Medical Centre (FMC) who have received one of the world's first leadless, dual-chamber pacemakers. It's called an AVEIR DR and it's currently only available at the FMC and Montreal Heart Institute in Canada.
The AVEIR DR is smaller than a traditional pacemaker – about one-tenth of the size – and is implanted through a person's leg instead of directly into someone's chest during major surgery. The new device has a recovery time of days instead of up to two months for a traditional pacemaker. "I had the original pacemaker for a single chamber and I found hiking up mountains wasn't as good as it could be," Kebert said Monday, about three months after his procedure.
"I would run out of breath when I was getting close to the top. Now, since I've had the (dual-chamber device), I'm a lot better at hiking." Dr.
Derek Exner is a heart rhythm specialist at the Foothills and says the new device allows patients who are prone to complications or infection to receive the care they need. "What they do is, they replace the heart's electrical system. So if your heart's going too slow, you're having problems with getting shorter breath or fainting, this replaces the electrical system and brings you back to a normal life," Exner explained.
Albertan John Kebert, 77, (right) has the leadless AVEIR DR pacemak.