Not Afraid to Go Beyond: Innovative Management of Intermuscular S-ICD Infection

Subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) infection can be managed conservatively, shifting the generator from the submuscular to intermuscular pocket.

A 50-year-old man with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and an S-ICD implanted as primary prevention with the intermuscular pocket technique was admitted to the cardiology department for a check-up owing to evidence of a pseudonodular skin lesion over the catheter sleeve that developed after having shaved the chest. Positron emission tomography/computed tomography scan was performed and revealed an active infection both over the S-ICD generator and along the lead. The patient declined transvenous ICD reimplantation, so we performed a revised shift and cover technique, shifting the pocket from intermuscular to submuscular. Efficacy of the procedure was confirmed on 8-months follow-up positron emission tomography/computed tomography.

The S-ICD shift and cover technique is safe and effective when performed in a patient with an infected intermuscular pocket.

Tailored strategies of S-ICD reimplantation should always be pursued in patients without fear of going beyond the serratus anterior muscle.