Mercy Hospital Physician First in Miami-Dade to Implant New Insertable Cardiac Monitor, Offering Important Insights into Patient's Irregular Heart Rhythms
Miami, FL (February 25, 2009) – Dr. Alberto Interian Jr., Electrophysiologist and Medical Director of Mercy Hospital’s Arrhythmia Syncope Center is the first physician in Miami-Dade County to implant an innovative cardiac monitoring device for patients with irregular heart rhythms (arrhythmias), or recurrent, unexplained fainting (syncope).
The Reveal XT device monitors patients 24 hours a day, every day for up to three years, recording important cardiac rhythm trend data that may allow a physician to confirm or rule out an abnormal heart rhythm more definitively than other tests.
“Cardiac arrhythmias are unpredictable,” said Dr. Interian. “The Reveal XT device gives me a long-term monitoring option that further assists me in making a diagnosis and determining the appropriate treatment for my patients.”
Physicians may choose the Reveal XT monitor for their patients with suspected arrhythmias in difficult-to-diagnose patients for whom long-term cardiac rhythm trending data may aid in a more informed diagnosis; or in syncope patients with known or suspected atrial fibrillation (AF), where the heart quivers and cannot effectively pump blood to the body’s organs.
The Reveal XT ICM is also an option for physicians seeking to detect the presence of atrial arrhythmias (irregular heart rhythms in the upper chambers, also known as AT), including asymptomatic episodes, or to monitor the amount of time a patient is in AT/AF to assess whether medical treatment is necessary or should be adjusted.
Placed just under the skin of the chest area using local anesthesia during a simple outpatient procedure, the device weighs just 15 grams and is approximately the size of a jump drive; unlike a pacemaker or implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, there are no leads or tiny wires that extend from the device into the heart’s chambers. To store an electrocardiogram (ECG), a patient places a hand-held, pager-sized assistant over the device and presses a button. The physician can then analyze the stored information, transmitted via the Medtronic CareLink® Network or during an in-office patient visit and determines whether the episode was caused by an abnormal heart rhythm.
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About Arrhythmias and Syncope
Arrhythmias are simply irregular heart rhythms in the heart’s atria (upper chambers) or ventricles (lower chambers). They can be dangerously fast heart rhythms, known as tachycardia or tachyarrhythmias; dangerously slow rhythms, known as bradycardia or bradyarrhythmias; fibrillation, where the heart quivers instead of pumping blood effectively to the body; or asystole, which is the absence of electromechanical activity within the heart. Causes of syncope, or unexplained, recurrent fainting, can be heart rhythm disturbances or abnormalities in the structure of the heart. Syncope can lead to serious injury or can be a precursor to sudden cardiac arrest. In almost 10 percent of patients, syncope has a cardiac cause; in 50 percent, a non-cardiac cause; and in 40 percent of patients the cause of syncope is unknown1. Syncope accounts for 1-6 percent of hospital admissions2 and 1 percent of total ER visits3 per year. Syncope is difficult to diagnose as syncopal episodes are often too infrequent and unpredictable for detection with conventional monitoring techniques.
About Mercy Hospital
Mercy Hospital, a recipient of the prestigious Magnet™ award for nursing excellence, is Miami-Dade’s only Catholic Hospital. Established in 1950, it is sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph and a member of Catholic Health East. A 473-bed acute care hospital, staffed by over 700 physicians representing 27 medical specialties, its Centers of Excellence include: The Heart Center at Mercy Hospital, the Miami Cancer Center at Mercy Hospital, the Orthopedic Institute at Mercy Hospital, and the Minimally Invasive Surgical Institute at Mercy Hospital. Mercy Hospital is located at 3663 S. Miami Avenue, Miami, FL.
1 E.S. Soteriades et al. Incidence and prognosis of syncope. N Eng J Med. 2002; 347 (12):878-885.
2 Kapoor W. Evaluation and outcome of patients with syncope. Medicine (Baltimore). May 1990;69:160-175.
3 Brignole M, et al. Management of syncope referred urgently to general hospitals with and without syncope units. Europace. 2003;5:293-298.
For more information regarding this release please contact:
Ashley Serrate
Caroline Underwood
Kreps/DeMaria
(305) 663-3543