Spanish Rhythm Association member´s perspectives on cardiac implantable electronic device reuse in low- and middle-income countries.

Background: Postmortem explanted cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) from developed countries could provide patients unable to afford new devices in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) a treatment they lack. This study describes the preferences of electrophysiologists and device implanting cardiologists from Spain on the management of explanted CIEDs and opinions and concerns regarding reuse in LMIC.

Methods: A nationwide self-administered questionnaire was sent to members of the Spanish Rhythm Association (n = 1110), between December 2020 and January 2021.

Results: Forty-two physician responses were obtained (response rate 5%). There was a strong preference to donate explanted devices for reuse in humans (61.9%) or animals (31%). The vast majority of the participants thought device reutilization was safe, ethical, and a reasonable alternative if a new device is not accessible. Moreover, they indicated they would be comfortable asking patients to consider post-mortem donation, and willing to implant post-mortem explanted and resterilized devices if they were unable to obtain new ones. 57.1% of respondents considered it would be beneficial for patients to have a document so they could reflect their wishes regarding device handling after their death. The most mentioned concerns regarding device reuse were malfunction (57.1%) and infection (54.8%).

Conclusions: The majority of respondents support reusable CIED donation to LMIC. It would be interesting to study the feasibility of a nationwide device reutilization program.