New leadless Pacemaker

they are implanting the new leadless pacemakers now. It appears that they are catheter positioned so the time to implant is reduced, no surgery takes place so the infection risk is limited to the catheter equipment (it happens sometimes-unfortunately) and the price of getting one will drop so more people who need on can get one. GOOD!

Patients fitted with first wireless pacemakers

16 January 2013

Prague, Jan 15 (CTK) - Czech patients have been the first in the world to benefit from the new leadless type of artificial cardiac pacemaker, Petr Neuzil, leading cardiologist in Prague's Na Homolce hospital who accomplished the first surgeries, told journalists yesterday.

The new device, designed to support heart's too slow pace, contains both batteries and a pacemaker and is planted straight in the heart, unlike the common types that are planted beneath the patient's skin and are connected with the heart through the artery system.

"We've have planted the revolutionary technology in 16 patients so far in cooperation with U.S. specialists," Neuzil said.

Up to 50 patients will receive the new device in Na Homolce hospital and about the same number in selected medical centres in Europe.

After the new technology receives the EU certificate, it can be introduced as a commonly used method.

Neuzil praised the new device's advantages such as a lower risk of infection and of mechanic defects, a higher comfort for patients and a favourable cosmetic effect.

The new technology LCP (Leadless Cardiac Pacemaker) has been developed by the U.S. company Nanostim, Inc. Its battery has a six-year lifespan and it can be replaced easily.

The device's placing in the patient's heart, through the artery system, is simple and practically painless as well.

The Na Homolce hospital has for a long time cooperated with U.S. experts in the research of heart diseases. That is also why Czech patients are the first to benefit from the new technology, Neuzil said.

http://praguemonitor.com/2013/01/16/patients-fitted-first-wireless-pacemakers

5 Comments

Wonder...

by ICDnFL - 2013-01-17 01:01:33

I wonder if cell phone towers or other radio signals could/would interfere?

Figures I'd just miss it. Oh well, if I'm still here in 2018 I might get an even better one.

Prague is looking even better all the time.
Thanks for the info. :)

Ironically

by kevinuncc - 2013-01-17 08:01:49

Saw this very dr last year during an emergency room visit and he suggested the need for a pacer after being evaluated for the past 3 years. Had an issue with insurance, but never mentioned this device at the time. Great dr. and superb hospital. There's a large teaching hospital nearby named Motol. They are somewhat competitors, but Na Homolce caters to rich foreigners.

It's Rechargeable too!

by agelbert - 2013-01-17 08:01:54

I forgot to mention that the leadless TEENY TINY "tic tac" sized PM has a nomnal battery life of about 7 years AND it's rechargeable wirelessly! I love it! Maybe someday I can trade in my Medtronic Adapta dual chamber PM for one of those tiny ones.

happy

by JoFosqk226 - 2013-01-17 10:01:33

You just made me very happy!! For some reason my ICD's leads LOVE to fracture, causing me to have way more surgeries than I should. I'm only 24 and I've already had 6 leads fracture. I would be so excited to have this new PM, but is it only a PM or do they have ICD's as well?? Thanks for posting this!!

~Jo

Jo

by agelbert - 2013-01-18 11:01:09

I'm sorry but this tiny PM is for bradycardia, as far as I can tell. But I'm sure they will come up with an ICD version so keep your hopes up. The problem is that ICDs need a lot more juice than PMs and therefore need a larger charge. So they will have to figure out a way to make a rechargeble ICD tiny enough to position inside the heart. It's a technical problem and I'm sure they are working on it. Remember that once these tiny things go in, since they can be recharged wirelessly, they never have to be replaced (unless they fail - of course). Who knows? The fact that an ICD is inside the heart might make it possible to defibrilate the heart with a lot lesss power since there aren't long leads that have to carry the voltage several inches. I'm just happy that the cost of PMs is going down with this inovative implantation procedure (no surgery, just a quick catheter implantation and remote control fine tuning afterwards). Many more people in the world's poor countries may soon be able to get a PM.

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