Leadless pacing technology now a possibility for more patients
Glens Falls Hospital is proud to be one of the first hospitals in the area to offer Micra™ AV, the world’s smallest pacemaker with atrioventricular (AV) synchrony. This new device significantly expands the number of candidates for leadless pacing technology, which offers a host of potential benefits for patients. The first procedure was performed by Dr. Henry T. Tan of Adirondack Cardiology on April 30, 2021.
According to Dr. Tan, “Leadless pacemakers are the next leap in pacing technology. Miniaturization of a pacemaker to a device that can be easily delivered directly to the heart has significant advantages and reduces certain complications that occur with traditional pacemakers. I believe that the direction of future pacing technology will incorporate increasing use of the leadless pacemaker with expansion of its capabilities. We are excited to bring this technology to our community.”
Micra AV is indicated for the treatment of patients with AV block, a type of heart block in which the electrical signals between the chambers of the heart (the atria and the ventricles) are impaired. Pacemakers, the most common way to treat AV block, help restore the heart’s normal rhythm and relieve symptoms by coordinating the electrical activity of the atria and the ventricles. When this process – known as AV synchrony – is achieved, patients are healthier and have decreased likelihood of pacemaker syndrome, improved quality of life, and increased blood flow from the left ventricle.
What is the Micra AV Pacemaker?
- Identical in size and shape to the original Micra Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) approved in 2016, Micra AV has specialized internal atrial sensing algorithms which detect cardiac movement, allowing the device to adjust pacing in the ventricle to coordinate with the atrium, providing “AV synchronous” pacing therapy to patients with AV block.
- Made by Medtronic, the Micra AV is unlike traditional pacemakers because the device does not require cardiac wires (leads) or a surgical “pocket” under the skin to deliver a pacing therapy.
- Comparable in size to a large vitamin, the Micra AV is one-tenth the size of a traditional pacemaker, but still delivers the most advanced pacing technology – all while being cosmetically invisible.
- Designed to provide a safe alternative to conventional pacemakers – without the complications associated with leads – the Micra AV is small enough to be delivered through a catheter and implanted directly into the heart with small tines and delivers electrical impulses that pace the heart through an electrode at the end of the device.
- Micra AV is also approved for both 1.5 and 3 Tesla (T) full-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and is designed to allow patients to be followed by their physicians and send data remotely via the Medtronic CareLink® Network.
Micra AV was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in January 2020.