Dameron Hospital | Health Outlook | Winter 2018

PACEMAKERS help restore the heart’s rhythm by sending electrical signals to the heart to increase the heart rate. Even though there are more than a million pacemakers implanted worldwide each year, there’s still a high percentage of complications associated with traditional pacing technology due to the leads or wires that have to thread through the blood vessels to connect to the heart. To minimize problems associated with conventional pacemakers, Dameron Hospital is now offering a new device called the Micra Transcatheter Pacing System, which can reduce medical complications such as infection and vein injury by almost 50 percent. Minimally invasive insertion Comparable in size to a large vitamin, the Micra device is 93 percent smaller than conventional pacemakers and does not require the use of leads or wires. This FDA-approved technology is delivered with minimally invasive techniques through a catheter and implanted directly into the heart, so no surgical “pocket” under the skin is required. 6 HEALTH OUTLOOK The Micra miniaturized pacemaker at Dameron is the most advanced pacemaker technology available The miniaturized Micra device is attached to the heart wall via small “tines,” delivering electrical impulses that pace the heart through an electrode at the end of the device. This fully self-contained pacemaker can also be repositioned or retrieved, if needed, and has an estimated 10-year battery life. The device is also approved for MRI scans, providing patients with access to the most advanced imaging diagnostic procedures available. Fewer complications— and no scar “Having Dameron invest in the Micra technology enhances the cardiac care we provide to our patients,” says Cyrus F. Buhari, DO, cardiologist, San Joaquin Cardiology Medical Group. “This safer, minimally invasive alternative to conventional pacemakers offers patients a cosmetically invisible solution that delivers better therapy and pacing options, no chest scar or bump, and fewer post-implant complications associated with pocket- or lead-related issues. Having Dameron offer this highly advanced transcatheter pacemaker technology is a huge benefit to our community.” Cyrus F. Buhari, DO The Micra device is 93 percent smaller than conventional pacemakers and does not require the use of leads or wires. World’s SMALLEST pacemaker Dameron Hospital: Your heart is in the right place