PERITONEAL MIGRATION OF EPICARDIALLY PLACED PACEMAKER

Abstract

There are several reports of pacemaker migration from the site of implantation. Pacemakers can erode the skin and become exposed, migrate toward the axilla or breast and protrude from the abdominal wall into the peritoneal cavity. Intraabdominal migration of an epicardial pacemaker generator is a rare but potentially life-threatening complication. We report a case of a 53- year-old woman in whom the generator silently migrated from the sheath of the rectus abdominis muscle in the upper abdominal wall down into the peritoneal cavity.