Implantable Heart Stimulation Post-Treatment Pacing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current cardiac pacemakers have limited success in providing long-lasting treatment for tachycardic atrial arrhythmias, as treatments often revert to arrhythmia shortly after cessation, necessitating repeated interventions based on heart condition changes.

Innovation Solution

An implantable cardiac pacemaker system with a processor, memory, and detection device that performs atrial anti-tachycardic stimulation followed by post-treatment pacing, adjusting stimulation duration and frequency to maintain a normal heart rhythm, ensuring sustained therapeutic effects by preventing immediate return to tachycardia.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If atrial anti-tachycardia stimulation is performed to treat tachycardic atrial arrhythmia, then the immediate treatment effect is improved, but the long-term therapeutic success rate deteriorates as the heart reverts to arrhythmia shortly after cessation

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveimmediate treatment effectivenessVSAvoidduration of therapeutic effect
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDuration of action of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing post-treatment pacing immediately after atrial anti-tachycardia stimulation to prevent the heart from reverting to arrhythmia. The pacing continues for a predetermined period or until a predetermined number of beats are delivered, proactively maintaining normal rhythm during the vulnerable transition period before the therapeutic effect fully establishes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements continuity of useful action by extending the pacing therapy beyond the initial anti-tachycardia stimulation. The post-treatment pacing creates an uninterrupted therapeutic sequence that bridges the gap between acute arrhythmia termination and long-term rhythm stabilization, ensuring continuous beneficial cardiac stimulation without harmful interruptions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #20Continuity of useful action

2Stability of the object's composition

If the stimulation rate is gradually reduced from initial value to allow intrinsic cardiac contractions, then the heart's natural rhythm is preserved, but the time required to detect termination of tachycardia increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestability of intrinsic cardiac rhythmVSAvoidtime to detect tachycardia termination
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies periodic action by delivering stimulation pulses at controlled intervals and reducing the stimulation rate in a structured manner. The pacing rate is decreased in steps or according to a predetermined schedule, allowing periodic assessment of intrinsic cardiac activity while maintaining overall therapeutic benefit throughout the transition period.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

Data Source

PatentEP3733240B1Implantable assembly for stimulating a human or animal heart
Publication Date: 2024.06.12 BIOTRONIK SE & CO KG
  • EP3733240B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3733240B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3733240B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

The invention relates to an implantable arrangement for stimulating a human or animal heart, comprising a processor (950), a storage device (960), an atrial stimulation device (930) and a detection device (920) for detecting atrial tachycardia.The arrangement is characterized in that the storage device (960) has a computer-readable program which, when executed on the processor (950), causes the processor (950) to perform the following steps: a) detecting (210) by means of the detection device (920) whether an atrial tachycardia requiring treatment is present in a human or animal heart; b) if an atrial tachycardia requiring treatment is present, performing an atrial anti-tachycardia stimulation (1030) by means of the atrial stimulation device (920); c) after performing the atrial anti-tachycardia stimulation (1030), performing atrial post-treatment stimulation (1040), wherein the post-treatment stimulation (1040) is designed to last from 1 minute to 7 days.