635 results about "Heart atrium" patented technology

The present invention relates to monitoring septal wall motion of the atrial and / or ventricular chambers of a heart for optimizing cardiac pacing intervals based on signals derived from the monitored wall motion. At least one lead of medical device is equipped with a motion sensor adapted to couple to septal tissue. The device receives and may post-process (e.g., suitably filter, rectify and / or integrate) motion signals to determine acceleration, velocity and / or displacement. During pacing interval optimization the wall motion is measured for those pacing intervals and the pacing interval setting(s) that produce minimal wall motion for chronic therapy delivery. In addition, methods for periodically determining whether to cease or resume delivery of a bi-ventricular pacing therapy to a patient that may have experienced beneficial reverse remodeling of the heart.

Apparatus is provided, which includes an electrode device, configured to be coupled to an atrial site of a subject containing parasympathetic nervous tissue, and a control unit. The control unit is configured to, responsively to a detection of an episode of non-sinus atrial tachycardia, restore normal sinus rhythm (NSR) of the subject, by driving the electrode device to apply a parasympathetic stimulation signal to the atrial site, and configuring the parasympathetic stimulation signal to activate the parasympathetic nervous tissue sufficiently to restore the NSR. Other embodiments are also described.

A graphical user interface is provided controllably displaying information retrieved from an implantable device, such as a pacemaker. The graphical user interface is comprised of a first and second window. The first window is adapted to display data identifying a plurality of episodes recorded by the implantable device, wherein the data is comprised of a plurality of fields. One of the fields may be used to identify a type of episode, such as ventricular tachycardia (VT), atrial and ventricular tachycardia (A&V), atrial fibrillation (AF), atrial flutter (Afl), atrial tachycardia (AT), and premature atrial contraction (PAC). The second window is adapted to display data types, such as VT, A&V, AF, Afl, AT, and PAC, that may be present in the plurality of fields, wherein at least one of the data types may be selected to filter the episodes displayed in the first window and display those episodes having the selected data types.

An embodiment of the invention includes a surgical device for coagulating soft tissue such as atrial tissue in the treatment of atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, and atrial tachycardia; tendon or ligament shrinkage; or articular cartilage removal. The surgical device integrates a suction mechanism with the coagulation mechanism improving the lesion creation capabilities of the device. The surgical device comprises an elongate member having an insulative covering attached about conductive elements capable of coagulating soft tissue when radiofrequency or direct current energy is transmitted to the conductive elements. Openings through the insulative covering expose regions of the conductive elements and are coupled to lumens in the elongate member which are routed to a vacuum source. Suction causes the soft tissue to actively engage the opening thus the integrated, exposed conductive elements to facilitate the coagulation process and ensure the lesions created are consistent, continuous, and transmural. The embodiments of the invention can also incorporate cooling mechanisms associated with the conductive elements and coupled to a fluid source to passively transport fluid along the contacted soft tissue surface to cool thus pushing the maximum temperature deeper into tissue.

The present invention provides a technique for verifying pacing capture of a ventricular chamber, particularly to ensure desired delivery of a ventricular pacing regime (e.g., cardiac resynchronization therapy or “CRT”). The invention also provides for ventricular capture management by delivering a single ventricular pacing stimulus and checking inter-ventricular conduction during a temporal window to determine if the ventricular pacing stimulus captured the chamber. If a loss-of-capture (LOC) signal results from the capture management testing, then the characteristics of the applied pacing pulses are modified and the conduction test repeated. In the event that the LOC signal persists, a pacing mode-switch to an atrial-based pacing therapy and / or non-bi-ventricular pacing regimen can be implemented.

Some embodiments of the invention provide a system for occluding a left atrial appendage of a patient. Some embodiments of the system can include a ring occluder that can be positioned around the left atrial appendage and a ring applicator to position the ring occluder with respect to the left atrial appendage. One embodiment discloses a method of accessing endocardial surfaces of the heart through the atrial appendage. Additional embodiments of the invention provide a clip occluder that can be positioned around the left atrial appendage. A clip applicator can position the clip occluder with respect to the left atrial appendage.

In an atrial pacing system, the A-PACE pulse energy, defined by the pulse width and pulse amplitude, sufficient to reliably capture the atrium without being wasteful of battery energy is periodically determined in accordance with atrial capture management (ACM) algorithms. The ACM algorithms allow a slow intrinsic atrial heart rate that is suppressed by delivered A-PACE pulses resulting in A-CAPTURE and that occurs when delivered test A-PACE pulses result in ALOC to be detected. ALOC is declared if an A-EVENT of the slow intrinsic atrial heart rate is detected either during an ACM test window timed from the last delivered test A-PACE pulse or during delivery of a sequence of test A-PACE pulses delivered within or defining the ACM test window correlated to the slow intrinsic atrial heart rate.

An implantable medical device delivers augmentation therapy to intervene in a pattern of sleep-disordered breathing. Augmentation therapy includes the delivery of electrical stimulation to cardiac tissue above and / or below a capture threshold. PESP and NES / CCM are possible augmentation therapies that are used alone or in combination. In addition, augmentation therapies can be used with other pacing therapies such as atrial overdrive pacing and atrial coordinated pacing as a therapy for sleep-disordered breathing.

A shunt for regulating blood pressure between a patient's left atrium and right atrium comprises an anchor comprising a neck region, first and second end regions, and a conduit affixed with the anchor that formed of a biocompatible material that is resistant to transmural and translation tissue ingrowth and that reduces a risk of paradoxical embolism.