| Re: Diving with Pacemaker
I'm back from diving West Palm this weekend. Yes, as Alan (babar) mentioned, often the indication for needing the pacemaker in the first place is disqualifying for diving, but not always. The pacemaker manufacturers have specs on their pacemakers regarding how they perform under pressure. This is mainly regarding hyperbaric chambers and most are rated to somewhere around 2.5 ATA. There are others that are rated much higher so check with your pacemaker clinic and they can get the rep to pull the specifics on your pacemaker.
Assuming you have normal heart muscle function, normal exercise tolerance on treadmill testing (13 METS -- your doc will know what this means), and no ischemia (limitation of blood flow to your heart) with exercise, the pacemaker itself does not disqualify you from diving.
Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me with specifics of your particular situation and I can give you a more detailed opinion.
Doug |