Alert defib patients to possible problem
Some of your defibrillator patients should be warned the devices need to be adjusted to fix a programming error that can cause the heart to race. The problem can leave recipients at risk of dizzy spells or more serious problems.
Indianapolis-based Guidant, the manufacturer of the Ventak AV, is contacting doctors to identify patients whose defibrillators contain the faulty program to see that they get an immediate modification. The devices won’t have to be surgically removed. Doctors can adjust the programming in the device by using a small radio transmitter.
In three of the 2,000 U.S. patients who received the devices since July, heart rates went to 190 beats per minute close to three times their resting pulse for three to five seconds. While healthy people can tolerate such heart rates, patients with heart disease that requires an implantable defibrillator face serious risks.
In some circumstances, the accelerated heart rate could trigger ventricular fibrillation, which can lead to death. However, a properly working defibrillator would recognize that condition and deliver a shock that returns the heart to a normal pulse.
Patients whose devices have programs that indicate no risk can wait until their next regularly scheduled visit to their doctor. Hugh Calkins, MD, director of electrophysiology at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, said in a statement that because the rapid heart rate doesn’t last long, patients might feel dizzy, but "it’s very unlikely to cause a life-threatening problem." No deaths have been linked to its Ventak AV defibrillator. t
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