Medtronic 5800 Pacemaker
date: label: date made
content: 1972
name: label: maker
content: Medtronic
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: In 1958 Earl Bakken an electrical engineer and co-founder of Medtronic Inc. developed the first wearable pacemaker. Bakken named his device the Medtronic 5800 because it was created in 1958. This external pacemaker was originally intended to treat short term heart rate irregularities which sometimes occurred after open heart surgery. It was developed at the request of Dr. Clarence Walton "Walt" Lillehei (1918-1999), a pioneering heart surgeon at the University of Minnesota.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Patients who experience what is known as Stokes - Adams syndrome; a loss of consciousness due to a change in the hearts rhythm or complete or partial heart block and an abnormal heart block resulting from open heart surgery were also helped by the development of the pacemaker.
label: Description (Brief)
content: The pacemaker is a simple rectangular white plastic box with two metal handles on each side for attachment to the patient with straps. It is powered by two transistors and a battery. A clear plastic cover protects the two dials (heart rate and the electrical output) recessed into the box and a tiny blinking red light which indicated the device was working. At the top of the pacemaker are two terminals. A wire attached to a terminal was then inserted through the skin and threaded into the heart. The wire sends pluses of electricity to a heart which cannot beat fast enough to pump blood through the body.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Minnesota, Minneapolis
topic: label: Subject
content: Medicine
label: Subject
content: Cardiology
label: Subject
content: Invention
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Medicine
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Medtronic, Inc.
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2014.0031.01
label: accession number
content: 2014.0031
label: catalog number
content: 2014.0031.01
label: serial number
content: 2BP0047
objectType: label: Object Name
content: cardiology
label: Object Name
content: pacemaker
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: stainless steel (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: teflon (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 16.8 cm x 13 cm x 5 cm; 6 5/8 in x 5 1/8 in x 1 31/32 in
label: Measurements
content: overall: 1 1/2 in x 4 3/8 in x 5 3/8 in; 3.81 cm x 11.1125 cm x 13.6525 cm