METHOD FOR LOW VOLTAGE DEFIBRILLATION WITH FAR-FIELD STIMULI OF VARIABLE TIMINGS BASED ON FEEDBACK FROM THE HEART

摘要

The present invention includes a method for cardiac defibrillation, especially low-voltage defibrillation, in a subject, including converting fibrillation into tachycardia and using feedback or an estimation thereof from the heart to time stimuli to occur when large amounts of tissue are excitable in the heart of the subject. The resultant tachycardia can then be terminated using a tachycardia termination protocol known to or conceivable by one of skill in the art. The method can be implemented using a currently available defibrillator or an internal cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) configured to apply a lower voltage shock, such as a far-field stimulation. A device designed especially for the method or another device employing this method can also be used. Because the proposed defibrillation method requires less energy than current approaches using single biphasic stimulus, defibrillator battery life is improvable or battery size decreasable. The method reduces pain and cellular damage resultant from traditional defibrillation.

主权项

1. A method for terminating fibrillation in a heart of a subject comprising:
obtaining a cardiac signal and feedback from the heart of the subject; monitoring the cardiac signal for a fibrillation event; applying a first far-field stimulation to the heart of the subject, wherein said first far-field stimulation is configured to convert the fibrillation event into a tachycardia event and a target time of said first far-field stimulation is determined using the feedback from the heart of the subject, or an estimate thereof; and applying a second stimulation to the heart of the subject, wherein said second stimulation is configured to terminate the tachycardia event.