Superior Vena Cava (SVC) syndrome is an uncommon but known complication of Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) and pacemaker lead placement. In general 0.2 to 3% of all implants are associated with symptomatic SVC stenosis. Stent placement is a viable option for benign SVC syndrome in the absence of indwelling pacing leads. The risk of perforation and lead fracture increases when large...

Introduction Some patients continue to experience palpitations, near syncope, and syncope after pacemaker or implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantation. In these patients it is very useful to correlate symptomswith arrhythmias and to confirm that their implanted device is working appropriately and is programmed optimally. External event monitoring can be a helpful adjunct in this...

Designing bug-free medical device software is difficult, especially in complex implantable devices that may be used in unanticipated contexts. Safety recalls of pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators due to firmware problems between 1990 and 2000 affected over 200,000 devices, comprising 41% of the devices recalled and are increasing in frequency. There is currently no formal me...

There is an increasing need for physicians to handle venous obstructions in pacemaker/implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implants. Venoplasty performed by an experienced operator is a simple, safe, and fast way to manage this situation and proceed to implant. Compared to other approaches, this strategy may offer particular advantages.

Introduction Although transvenous pacemakers and implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICD) have long been the standard of care, they are not without significant drawbacks. In recent years, major advances have been achieved in leadless pacemaker technology and entirely subcutaneous ICD (S-ICD) systems that obviate intracardiac leads and hence carry the potential to reduce associated complica...

AIMS AND BACKGROUND A prospective analysis was carried out on a group of irradiated patients with pacemakers or implantable cardioverter-defibrillators to identify any relationship between the various types of devices and physical and dosimetric parameters. Cardiac toxicity of the treatment was also investigated. METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN Forty-five irradiated patients, implanted with pacemake...

We report the case of a 44-year-old with unrepaired complex congenital heart disease (CHD), a pre-existing permanent pacemaker, and a subcutaneous implantable cardioverterdefibrillator (SICD) implanted for secondary prevention. Right parasternal electrode positioning and step-down defibrillation testing were integrated. Application of the SICD for device therapy in CHD patients remains quite li...

A subdermally implantable flexible photovoltatic (IPV) device is proposed for supplying sustainable electric power to in vivo medical implants. Electric properties of the implanted IPV device are characterized in live animal models. Feasibility of this strategy is demonstrated by operating a flexible pacemaker with the subdermal IPV device which generates DC electric power of ≈647 μW under the ...

Like any other foreign bodies, implanted cardiac devices can become infected. Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative Staphilococci are the most common causes of infections of pacemaker and defibrillator systems. In this case an implantable cardioverter defibrillator pocket infection caused by an extremely rare microorganism, Klebsiella pneumonia, is presented.

METHODS The first 206 patients treated with the S3 were compared with 371 preceding patients treated with SAPIEN XT valves. Patients who previously underwent pacemaker or implantable cardioverter defibrillator implantation or transapical and valve-in-valve procedureswere excluded from the analysis. All patientsweremonitored for at least 7 days. Previous and new conduction abnormalities were doc...