Chronic experiences with a single lead dual chamber implantable cardioverter defibrillator system

Monitoring of atrial rhythm in patients implanted with ICDs may improve accuracy in identifying supraventricular arrhythmias and, therefore, prevent inappropriate therapies. Since difficulties were found in dual chamber ICDs with separate leads, a new designed single lead dual chamber ICD system was tested. Twenty-five patients implanted with a Deikos A+ (single coil defibrillation lead with two atrial sensing rings combined with a dual chamber ICD with a high amplifying atrial channel) were tested. Atrial and ventricular signals were analyzed during sinus rhythm (SR) and sinus tachycardias (STs), atrial flutter and AF, and VT or VF. Follow-ups were performed after 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after implantation. Analysis of EGM amplitudes of stored episodes revealed that atrial signals during atrial flutter (2.1 +/- 0.51 mV) were comparable to those of ST (2.2 +/- 0.5 mV). Atrial amplitudes during AF were significantly lower (0.81 +/- 0.5 mV, P<0.01). During VF atrial "sinus" signals (2 +/- 0.8 mV) were stable. Ventricular parameters did not differ from a standard ICD lead; defibrillation threshold was 11.4 +/- 4.5 J (16 patients). During intraoperative and prehospital discharge measurements, 97.1% of SR-P waves and 99.2% of atrial flutter waves were detected correctly. In AF 91.11% of atrial signals were detected. Analysis of 505 stored episodes showed that 96.8% of ST and 100% of atrial flutter and 100% of AF episodes have been classified correctly and no underdetection of VT/VF was found. The first experiences with the new VDD-ICD system show an increase of the specificity to detect ventricular tachycardias to a level comparable to dual chamber ICDs with two leads. The reliability of this system has to be proven in a prospective randomized study.