Health Tip: How a Pacemaker Helps the Heart

Why the device is prescribed

Related Encyclopedia • Alzheimer's Disease • Aneurysms • Angina Pectoris • Angiogram More... Related Healthscout Videos Howard: The Helping Hand for Stroke Survivors Fixing Torn Hearts Medicine's Next Big Thing? Growing Hearts How can a supportive family help? More... Related Animations • Alzheimer's Disease Video Animation • Angioplasty • Coronary Bypass Surgery • Erectile Dysfunction More... Related Drug Information • Accupril • Actonel • Altace • Avapro More... Related News Articles • Drug-Coated Stents Still Spark Debate • Health Tip: Coping With Alzheimer's • Group B Strep Down Among Newborns, Up Among Adults • Noise in Artery Could Warn of Heart Risk More...

(HealthDay News) - A pacemaker is a small, battery-powered device that is implanted in the skin of the chest or abdomen, and helps regulate the heartbeat.

Text Continues Below

---

Here are reasons for why a pacemaker may be prescribed, courtesy of the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute:

• To correct a slow, fast or irregular heartbeat.
• To ensure that the heart's ventricles contract normally, in cases of atrial fibrillation.
• To regulate the electrical signals between the upper and lower chambers of the heart, and in other cases, between the ventricles of the heart.

-- Diana Kohnle