An "intelligent" pacemaker which alerts doctors to problems by sending a text message is being trialled in Pembrokeshire.

Ray Lockyer of Milford Haven wears a mobile phone-size transmitter unit on his belt which monitors his heart condition and communicates with hospital staff through the telephone network.

Every night, the device sends heart information 500 miles to Germany - where device manufacturer Biotronik is based - and transmits SOS messages back to Morriston Hospital, Swansea.

Texts are even catching on in the NHS

It means grandfather and heart attack victim Mr Lockyer, 55, need not make lengthy journeys for doctors to download health data on the spot and benefits from continual monitoring.

The keen gardener was forced to give up his work as a scaffolder due to a condition which sometimes causes his heart to vibrate violently.

But now he hopes the pacemaker, which acts as a defibrillator whenever it identifies trouble, can give him a new lease of life.

He is the first in the UK to be fitted with the device because Wales' wide-open spaces are thought to be the best environment to put the pacemaker through its paces.

'Hollywood technology'

"It's like someone is watching over my husband without being here," his wife Doreen told BBC News Online.

"Every night while we are sleeping, it sends the information. If the doctors think anything is wrong, they will call up."

The device even causes television interference when dialling up, just like a mobile phone.

It's like someone is watching over my husband without being here

Doreen Lockyer

Mr Lockyer added: "It is amazing - like something from a futuristic Hollywood movie. To an ordinary man you never see this technology.

"If I have any trouble, it will shock my heart into the correct order.

"I can sleep better at night knowing the device is working and there's a person at the other end of the phone."

Downloading data

Morriston Hospital cardiologists want to test the system to identify whether it can be used on a wider scale.

Heart disease is one of the biggest killers in Wales and health professionals suspect the device could prove beneficial.

A similar device tested in the US in March cut heart attacks in wearers by a third.

Dr Mark Anderson, who has researched the transmitter thoroughly, said: "In the past, we had to physically see the patient to retrieve the information.

"If the patient thought something happened to them overnight they would have to come to the clinic to find out.

"Many of our patients live 60 or 80 miles away from the clinic and it is hard to get regular information about their condition.

"Now, through this new device, we can get a information without us seeing them.

"West Wales is a very rural area - it has an excellent testing environment for this system."

Dr David Cunningham, director of the National Pacemaker and ICD Database, said the invention would help to reassure heart patients.

"It's going to improve the communication between the patients and their cardiologists," he said.

"That will make the patient feel better. "Reassurance is important for ICD patients because they worry that they have this device inside them that can shock their hearts."