Heart Rhythm

Hearts should have normal rhythm to their beats, but when these beats are out of synch, it causes inefficient pumping of blood. Irregular heart arrhythmias occur when the electrical signals that coordinate the heart's beats do not work properly. This can cause beats that are too fast (tachycardia), or too slow (bradycardia). Tachycardias include atrial fibrillation (AFib), supraventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, and ventricular tachycardia (VT). Bradycardias include sick sinus syndrome and conduction block. Electrophysiology arrhythmia treatments include medications, life style changes, and the EP lab interventions of catheter ablation, and implantable pacemakers or defibrillators.

Brugada arrhythmogenic substrate that causes VT and sudden cardiac death. This study showed ablation of this substrate area could help prevent sudden cardiac arrest in these patients.

Epicardial ablation in Brugada syndrome reduces sudden cardiac death

A late-breaking study at Heart Rhythm 2022 found epicardial ablation in Brugada syndrome helped significantly reduce sudden cardiac arrest in these patients, increasing their survival.

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Veteran cardiologist Morton M. Mower, co-inventor of the automatic ICD, dies at 89

“I think he was the most brilliant person I’ve ever met," one long-time colleague said. 

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Same-day discharge for AFib ablation a success thanks to telehealth

The new analysis, presented during Heart Rhythm 2022, focused on patients treated at a high-volume facility during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

mavacamten

FDA approves mavacamten for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

The FDA’s approval was based on data from the EXPLORER-HCM trial, which showed that mavacamten was superior to a placebo for treating obstructive HCM and associated with no significant long-term, treatment-related adverse events.

VIDEO: How to implant a Linq implantable cardiac monitor

The Medtronic Linq and Linq II implantable cardiac monitors (ICM) have become some of the most popular ICM devices on the market, partly because they are easy to insert.

Same-day discharge after LAAO associated with strong outcomes, significant cost savings

A new analysis found that 30-day outcomes do not significantly change when LAAO patients go home the same day as their procedure. 

Using drones to deliver automated external defibrillators (AEDs) is an effective way to reach patients suffering from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), according to a new analysis published in European Heart Journal.

Drones deliver AEDs to patients with suspected out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

Researchers in Sweden deployed drones during real-life emergencies, noting that the drone often arrived to the patient's location ahead of an ambulance. 

Fitbit’s latest AFib algorithm receives FDA clearance, will be available ‘soon’

The new algorithm was designed to evaluate a user's heart rhythm while they are still or even sleeping.