2nd Pacemaker Patient Returns to Active Life

Jason Davey had been sleeping too much.

Returning home from his job this summer at a McDonald’s near his Santa Ana home, Jason, 16, would sleep all afternoon and into the next morning.

Although he was born with a defect that reduced his heart rate to only 45 beats per minute, he played on Little League teams and had always kept up with his friends.

In August, Jason underwent an Activitrax implant at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange just two days after Andrea Montano’s surgery, making him the second Orange County youth to receive the variable-rate pacemaker.

Jason’s troubles began last year when he noticed he was becoming extremely fatigued after heavy activity or concentration. A checkup indicated his heart rate had dropped to 38. Finally, a treadmill test was ordered. Jason’s heart registered 20 beats per minute when the normal rate is 60.

When the pacemaker came on the market, Jason’s doctor recommended it, and now Jason says he feels “great.” He is back on his skateboard and planning to return to El Modena High School on Monday as a junior.

His only complaint is that when his heart rate is elevated,, he can feel the device in his chest, and “it grosses me out,” he said.