Reactive atrial-based antitachycardia pacing therapy reduces atrial tachyarrhythmias.

BACKGROUND: Reactive atrial-based antitachycardia pacing (rATP) aims to terminate atrial tachyarrhythmia/atrial fibrillation (AT/AF) episodes when they spontaneously organize to atrial flutter or atrial tachycardia; however, its effectiveness in the real-world has not been studied. We used a large device database (Medtronic CareLink, Medtronic, Minneapolis, MN, USA) to evaluate the effects of rATP at reducing AT/AF. METHODS: Pacemaker, defibrillator, and resynchronization device transmission data were analyzed. Eligible patients had device detected AT/AF during a baseline period but were not in persistent AT/AF immediately preceding first transmission. Note that 1:1 individual matching between groups was conducted using age, sex, device type, pacing mode, AT/AF, and percent ventricular pacing at baseline. Risks of AT/AF events were compared between patients with rATP-enabled versus control patients with rATP-disabled or not available in the device. For matched patients, AT/AF event rates at 2 years were estimated by Kaplan-Meier method, and hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated by Cox proportional hazard models. RESULTS: Of 43,440 qualifying patients, 4,203 had rATP on. Matching resulted in 4,016 pairs, totaling 8,032 patients for analysis. The rATP group experienced significantly lower risks of AT/AF events lasting ≥1 day (HR 0.81), ≥7 days (HR 0.64), and ≥30 days (HR 0.56) compared to control (P < 0.0001 for all). In subgroup analysis, rATP was associated with reduced risks of AT/AF events across age, sex, device type, baseline AT/AF, and preventive atrial pacing. CONCLUSIONS: Among real-world patients from a large device database, rATP therapy was significantly associated with a reduced risk of AT/AF. This association was independent of whether the patient had a pacemaker, defibrillator, or resynchronization device.

To retrieve, or not to retrieve: System revisions with the Micra transcatheter pacemaker.

BACKGROUND: Early experience with leadless pacemakers has shown a low rate of complications. However, little is known about system revision in patients with these devices. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the system revision experience with the Micra Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS). METHODS: Patients with implants from the Pre-market Micra Transcatheter Pacing Study and the Micra Transcatheter Pacing System Continued Access Study (N = 989) were analyzed and compared with 2667 patients with transvenous pacemakers (TVPs). Revisions included TPS retrieval/explant, repositioning, replacement, or electrical deactivation (with or without prior attempt at retrieval, generally followed by TVP implant) for any reason. Kaplan-Meier revision rates were calculated to account for varying follow-up duration and were compared using a Fine-Gray competing risk model. RESULTS: The actuarial rate for revision at 24 months postimplant was 1.4% for the TPS group (11 revisions in 10 patients), 75% (95% confidence interval 53%-87%; P < .001) lower than the 5.3% for the TVP group (123 revisions in 117 patients). TPS revisions occurred 5-430 days postimplant for elevated pacing thresholds, need for alternate therapy, pacemaker syndrome, and prosthetic valve endocarditis; none were due to device dislodgment or device-related infection. TPS was disabled and left in situ in 7 cases, 3 were retrieved percutaneously (range 9-406 days postimplant), and 1 was surgically removed during aortic valve surgery. CONCLUSION: The overall system revision rate for patients with TPS at 24 months was 1.4%, 75% lower than that for patients with TVPs. TPS was disabled and left in situ in 64% of revisions, and percutaneous retrieval was successful as late as 14 months postimplant.

Atrial antitachycardia pacing and atrial remodeling: A substudy of the international, randomized MINERVA trial.

BACKGROUND: Atrial tachycardia (AT) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are common in pacemaker patients and are associated with bad prognoses. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate atrial antitachycardia pacing impact on AT/AF-induced atrial remodeling, measured by early recurrence of AT/AF (ERAF) and by change in left atrial diameter (LAD), and to evaluate the impact of AT/AF duration on ERAF incidence. METHODS: Pacemaker patients were randomized to dual-chamber pacing (Control DDDR: 385 patients), managed ventricular pacing (MVP: 398 patients), or atrial antitachycardia pacing plus MVP (DDDRP+MVP: 383 patients). LAD change, estimated by echocardiography, was considered significant if the relative difference between baseline and 24-month measurements was >10%. RESULTS: At median follow-up of 34 months, ERAF incidence was significantly lower in the DDDRP+MVP arm for all AT/AF durations, in particular, ERAF followed AT/AF longer than 3 hours in 53% cases in Control DDDR, in 51% cases in MVP, and in 39% cases in DDDRP+MVP (P <.001 vs other groups). ERAF incidence showed a U-shaped pattern when evaluated as a function of previous AT/AF duration, decreasing for durations from 5 minutes to 12 hours and increasing for longer durations. Among patients with significant LAD change, the proportion of patients with a reduction in LAD was 35% in Control DDDR, 37% in MVP, and 70% in DDDRP+MVP (P <.05 vs other groups). CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that atrial electrical remodeling becomes important after about 12 hours of continuous arrhythmia. Compared to DDDR or MVP, DDDRP+MVP reduces ERAF and favors LAD reduction, suggesting that atrial antitachycardia pacing may reverse electrical and mechanical remodeling.

Inappropriate shocks in single-chamber and subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillators: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

AIMS: Single-chamber (VR-ICD) and subcutaneous (S-ICD) implantable cardioverter-defibrillators are effective to protect patients against sudden death but expose them to higher risk of inappropriate shock (IS). We sought to quantify the annual rate and influencing factors of ISs in VR- and S-ICDs from the literature. METHODS AND RESULTS: PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library were searched for full text articles with IS rates. Poisson distribution estimated proportion of patients with ISs; rates were annualized based on follow-up duration. Random effects meta-analysis accounted for study-to-study variation. Out of 3264 articles, 16 qualified for the meta-analysis. Across studies, 6.4% [95% confidence interval (CI) 5.1-7.9%] of patients received an IS per year. Meta-regression analyses demonstrated that IS rates were lower in more recent studies [rate ratio (RR) per year: 0.93, 95% CI: 0.87-0.98; P = 0.01] and trended lower in studies with longer follow-up (RR per year: 0.78, 95% CI: 0.60-1.01; P = 0.06). Use of S-ICDs (RR: 1.81, 95% CI: 0.86-3.81; P = 0.12) and ventricular tachycardia zone programmed on (RR: 1.13, 95% CI: 0.65-1.97; P = 0.66) were not associated with a significantly increased change in risk. The IS rate observed in one of the more recent studies was significantly lower than predicted after accounting for covariates (RR: 0.29, 95% CI: 0.14-0.60; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: A comprehensive review of the literature shows that 6.4% of patients with ICDs experienced their first IS annually. One of the 16 studies was better than predicted with the lowest reported rate (1.9%) and could not be explained by timing of the study or other covariates.

Predictors of short-term clinical response to cardiac resynchronization therapy.

AIMS: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) reduces morbidity and mortality in patients with symptomatic heart failure and QRS prolongation but there is uncertainty about which patient characteristics predict short-term clinical response. METHODS AND RESULTS: In an individual patient meta-analysis of three double-blind, randomized trials, clinical composite score (CCS) at 6 months was compared in patients assigned to CRT programmed on or off. Treatment-covariate interactions were assessed to measure likelihood of improved CCS at 6 months. MIRACLE, MIRACLE ICD, and REVERSE trials contributed data for this analysis (n = 1591). Multivariable modelling identified QRS duration and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) as predictors of CRT clinical response (P < 0.05). The odds ratio for a better CCS at 6 months increased by 3.7% for every 1% decrease in LVEF for patients assigned to CRT-on compared to CRT-off, and was greatest when QRS duration was between 160 and 180 ms. CONCLUSIONS: In symptomatic chronic heart failure patients (NYHA class II-IV), longer QRS duration and lower LVEF independently predict early clinical response to CRT.

Rate adaptive pacing in an intracardiac pacemaker.

BACKGROUND: The Micra transcatheter pacemaker was designed to have similar functionality to conventional transvenous VVIR pacing systems. It provides rate adaptive pacing using a programmable 3-axis accelerometer designed to detect patient activity in the presence of cardiac motion. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the system's performance during treadmill tests to maximum exertion in a subset of patients within the Micra Transcatheter Pacing Study. METHODS: Patients underwent treadmill testing at 3 or 6 months postimplant with algorithm programming at physician discretion. Normalized sensor rate (SenR) relative to the programmed upper sensor rate was modeled as a function of normalized workload in metabolic equivalents (METS) relative to maximum METS achieved during the test. A normalized METS and SenR were determined at the end of each 1-minute treadmill stage. The proportionality of SenR to workload was evaluated by comparing the slope from this relationship to the prospectively defined tolerance margin (0.65-1.35). RESULTS: A total of 69 treadmill tests were attempted by 42 patients at 3 and 6 months postimplant. Thirty tests from 20 patients who completed ≥4 stages with an average slope of 0.86 (90% confidence interval 0.77-0.96) confirmed proportionality to workload. On an individual test basis, 25 of 30 point estimates (83.3%) had a normalized slope within the defined tolerance range (range 0.46-1.08). CONCLUSION: Accelerometer-based rate adaptive pacing was proportional to workload, thus confirming rate adaptive pacing commensurate to workload is achievable with an entirely intracardiac pacing system.

A Leadless Intracardiac Transcatheter Pacing System.

BACKGROUND: A leadless intracardiac transcatheter pacing system has been designed to avoid the need for a pacemaker pocket and transvenous lead. METHODS: In a prospective multicenter study without controls, a transcatheter pacemaker was implanted in patients who had guideline-based indications for ventricular pacing. The analysis of the primary end points began when 300 patients reached 6 months of follow-up. The primary safety end point was freedom from system-related or procedure-related major complications. The primary efficacy end point was the percentage of patients with low and stable pacing capture thresholds at 6 months (≤2.0 V at a pulse width of 0.24 msec and an increase of ≤1.5 V from the time of implantation). The safety and efficacy end points were evaluated against performance goals (based on historical data) of 83% and 80%, respectively. We also performed a post hoc analysis in which the rates of major complications were compared with those in a control cohort of 2667 patients with transvenous pacemakers from six previously published studies. RESULTS: The device was successfully implanted in 719 of 725 patients (99.2%). The Kaplan-Meier estimate of the rate of the primary safety end point was 96.0% (95% confidence interval [CI], 93.9 to 97.3; P<0.001 for the comparison with the safety performance goal of 83%); there were 28 major complications in 25 of 725 patients, and no dislodgements. The rate of the primary efficacy end point was 98.3% (95% CI, 96.1 to 99.5; P<0.001 for the comparison with the efficacy performance goal of 80%) among 292 of 297 patients with paired 6-month data. Although there were 28 major complications in 25 patients, patients with transcatheter pacemakers had significantly fewer major complications than did the control patients (hazard ratio, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.33 to 0.75; P=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In this historical comparison study, the transcatheter pacemaker met the prespecified safety and efficacy goals; it had a safety profile similar to that of a transvenous system while providing low and stable pacing thresholds. (Funded by Medtronic; Micra Transcatheter Pacing Study ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02004873.).

Impact of a Novel Adaptive Optimization Algorithm on 30-Day Readmissions: Evidence From the Adaptive CRT Trial.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the impact of the Medtronic AdaptivCRT (aCRT) (Medtronic, Mounds View, Minnesota) algorithm on 30-day readmissions after heart failure (HF) and all-cause index hospitalizations. BACKGROUND: The U.S. Hospital Readmission Reduction Program, which includes a focus on HF, reduces Medicare inpatient payments when readmissions within 30 days of discharge exceed a moving threshold based on national averages and hospital-specific risk adjustments. Internationally, readmissions within 30 days of any discharge may attract reduced or no payment. Recently, cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices equipped with the aCRT algorithm allowing automated ambulatory device programming were introduced. The Adaptive CRT trial demonstrated the algorithm's safety and comparable outcome against a rigorous echocardiography-based optimization protocol. METHODS: We analyzed data from the Adaptive CRT trial, which randomized patients undergoing CRT defibrillation on a 2:1 basis to aCRT (n = 318) or to CRT with echocardiographic optimization (Echo, n = 160) and followed up these patients for a mean of 20.2 months (range: 0.2 to 31.3 months). Logistic regression with generalized estimating equation methodology was used to compare the proportion of patients hospitalized for HF and for all causes who had a readmission within 30 days. RESULTS: For HF hospitalizations, the 30-day readmission rate was 19.1% (17 of 89) in the aCRT group and 35.7% (15 of 42) in the Echo group (odds ratio: 0.41; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.19 to 0.86; p = 0.02). For all-cause hospitalization, the 30-day readmission rate was 14.8% (35 of 237) in the aCRT group compared with 24.8% (39 of 157) in the Echo group (odds ratio: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.31 to 0.94; p = 0.03). The risk of readmission after HF or all-cause index hospitalization with aCRT was also significantly reduced beyond 30 days. CONCLUSIONS: Use of the aCRT algorithm is associated with a significant reduction in the probability of a 30-day readmission after both HF and all-cause hospitalizations. (Adaptive Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy Study [aCRT]; NCT00980057).

Implantable defibrillators improve survival in patients with mildly symptomatic heart failure receiving cardiac resynchronization therapy: analysis of the long-term follow-up of remodeling in systolic left ventricular dysfunction (REVERSE).

BACKGROUND: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) decreases mortality, improves functional status, and induces reverse left ventricular remodeling in selected populations with heart failure. These benefits have been noted with both CRT-pacemakers as well as those devices with defibrillator backup (CRT-D). However, there are little data comparing mortality between these 2 device types. METHODS AND RESULTS: REsynchronization reVErses Remodeling in Systolic left vEntricular dysfunction (REVERSE) was a multicenter, randomized trial of CRT among patients with mild heart failure. Long-term annual follow-up for 5 years was preplanned. The present analysis was confined to the 419 patients who were randomized to active CRT group. CRT-pacemakers or CRT-D devices were implanted based on national guidelines at the time of enrollment, with 74 patients receiving CRT pacemaker devices and the remaining 345 patients receiving CRT-D devices. After 12 months of CRT, changes in the clinical composite score, left ventricular end systolic volume index, 6-minute walk time, and quality of life indices were similar between CRT pacemaker and CRT-D patients. However, long-term follow-up showed lower morality in the CRT-D group. Specifically, multivariable analysis showed that CRT-D (hazard ratio, 0.35; P=0.003) was a strong independent predictor of survival. Female sex, longer unpaced QRS duration, and smaller baseline left ventricular end systolic volume index also were also associated with better survival. CONCLUSIONS: REVERSE demonstrated that the addition of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy to CRT is associated with improved long-term survival compared with CRT pacing alone in mild heart failure. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: http://clinicaltrials.gov. Unique Identifier: NCT00271154.