If a person is diagnosed with a heartbeat that’s too slow or too fast, their cardiologist may recommend a pacemaker to send electrical impulses to the heart to control its rhythm.
A traditional pacemaker is often surgically implanted under the skin and connected to the heart through wires (or leads) that transmit the electrical signals to the heart.
Physicians and staff from Capital Health Heart and Vascular Institute recently performed a minimally invasive leadless pacemaker implant at Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey that doesn’t need cardiac leads to deliver therapy and represents the latest advance in cardiac arrhythmia therapy.
Smaller than a AAA battery, leadless pacemakers are appropriate for certain patients with significant bradycardia (slow heartbeat) or chronic atrial fibrillation (heart arrhythmia that causes the heart’s top chambers to quiver and beat irregularly).
Through a minimally invasive procedure, Dr. Scott Burke, medical director of Cardiac Electrophysiology and a board certified, fellowship trained cardiac electrophysiologist at Capital Health Cardiology Specialists, inserts a catheter into a patient’s leg to guide the Aveir VR LP leadless pacemaker through a vein and implant it directly into the heart’s right ventricle.
Capital Health’s Electrophysiology team, with experts from Capital Health Cardiology Specialists, performs procedures like leadless pacemaker implants to manage and treat patients with conditions that involve abnormal electrical behavior of the heart. To make an appointment, or to find an office near you, visit capitalhealthcardiology.org.
PHOTO CAP: Scott Burke, MD, FACC, FHRS