Left atrial booster pump function is an independent predictor of subsequent life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias in non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy.

Aims: Left atrial (LA) function helps to preserve cardiac output and to control pulmonary capillary wedge pressure in the setting of left ventricular (LV) impairment, but little is known about the contribution of the LA function to ventricular arrhythmia. We sought whether LA booster pump function was associated with arrhythmias in patients undergoing primary prevention implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantation for non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy (NICM), independent of global longitudinal strain (GLS) and mechanical dispersion (MD).

Methods And Results: We identified 124 NICM patients (56 ± 13, 67 male) who underwent echocardiography pre-ICD implantation for primary prevention.

Remote monitoring of cardiovascular devices: a time and activity analysis.

Background: Expanding indications for cardiovascular implantable electronic devices are accompanied by an increasing burden of device clinic follow-up. Remote monitoring (RM) may be less time-consuming compared to in-office follow-up; however, its effect on the device clinic workflow has not been clarified.

Objective: To determine the impact of RM on device clinic workflow.

Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator FDA safety advisories: Impact on patient mortality and morbidity.

Background: A significant proportion of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) have been subject to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisories. The impact of device advisories on mortality or patient care is poorly understood. Although estimated risks of ICD generators under advisory are low, dependency on ICD therapies to prevent sudden death justifies the assessment of long-term mortality.

Cardiac defibrillation and resynchronization therapies: principles, therapies, and management implications.

Patients with heart failure remain at high risk for sudden cardiac death (SCD) and death due to heart failure progression, despite the incorporation of pharmacologic agents into clinical practice that have been shown to decrease mortality in clinical trials. Most patients experience SCD as their first dysrrhythmic event. The implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) effectively terminates ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation (VT/VF) aborting SCD.