New Cross Hospital's hearty help for patients aiming to improve quality of life
A hospital has played a part in giving heart patients a new lease of life with a device that means less surgery and a better quality of life.
Doctors at New Cross, Wolverhampton fitted it inside retired teacher Mark Lawton, from Little Stretton, over the border in Shropshire.
The device has a battery life of up to a decade – three times longer than the life span of his previous implant.
It means instead of having to undergo surgery every three years, the 61-year-old former teacher and IT consultant can now go 10 without the need for medical intervention.
He was fitted with the Boston Scientific device at New Cross Hospital, run by the Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust in December 2015.
Two years after having the new device – called the Boston Scientific Inogen X4 cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator – fitted, he has been told it still has eight years power left.
Now British healthcare guidance body NICE has recommended the longer-lasting battery technology for implantable heart rhythm devices, as it could save the NHS around £6 million over five years through fewer operations to replace the devices.
Mr Lawton has had ongoing heart related issues for a number of years arising from improper electrical activity in the ventricles of the heart.
He said his previous device had only lasted three years.
"When I had the previous device fitted, I wasn't aware of how long the battery would last," he said.
"I knew it had to be replaced, but I was shocked to discover that it had to be replaced so soon after having it fitted.
"I was delighted to hear that I could be fitted with a battery with a longer life span.
"It meant that I was less anxious about the new battery as it meant I didn't have to keep coming back to hospital every few years to be refitted."
