Carrie Pottmeyer July 17, 2008
The heart constantly beats about 70 times every minute. These beats are triggered by electrical impulses in the SA node - the hearts natural pacemaker. Once in a while the heart may harmlessly skip a beat. However, a continual irregularity of beating, called arrhythmia, is a serious condition that about 4 million Americans suffer from. Some people are born with arrhythmia while some cases develop due to heart disease and high blood pressure. Self induced factors such as stress, caffeine, smoking, and alcohol can also affect the heart’s beat.
A pacemaker is one solution to this problem. It is a small, battery-powered device that helps regulate the heart beat’s rhythm. Pacemakers can help slow or fast heart rates and blockage in the heart’s electrical system. There are several different types of pacemakers. There are Single-Chamber Pacemakers. In a single-chamber pacemaker, only one wire is placed into either the upper or lower chamber of the heart. In Dual-Chamber Pacemakers wires are coordinated in the atrium and ventricle. This approach closely matches the natural pacing of the heart. Rate-Responsive Pacemakers have sensors that automatically adjust to changes in a person's physical activity.
The different types of pacemakers are used according to the patients’ needs and condition. For example, patients with sick sinus syndrome benefit from the dual chamber pacemaker because they are less likely to develop atrial fibrillation or heart failure in comparison to the single chamber pacemaker. In my opinion, the Dual-Chamber pacemaker would seem to be a better solution than the single because the dual mirrors the natural pacemaker of the heart better than the single. In addition, the rate responsive would be beneficial to active lifestyles. The best pacemaker seems to be a combination of the dual chamber and the rate responsive pacemaker.
Heart Rhythm Society
http://www.hrspatients.org/patients/treatments/pacemakers.asp
Texas Heart Institute
http://texasheart.org/HIC/Topics/Cond/Arrhythmia.cfm
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BI920-3B
The purpose of this course is to develop an appreciation for how Biomedical Engineers work to extract the principles underlying the functionality of human biological systems and replicate them using synthetic materials to replace damaged/dysfunctional organs.
2 comments:
It's interesting that there is a pacemaker that can be a single chamber when the heart is basically a double chamber.
Great job!
I liked how you mentioned the different types of implants based on the patient's needs.
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