title: Neuromuscular electric stimulation in heart transplantation candidates with cardiac pacemakers.
abstract: Twenty percent of heart transplantation candidates have cardiac pacemakers. Application of neuromuscular electric stimulation (NMES) in patients with pacemakers is controversial because of potential electromagnetic field interference and subsequent failure of the pacemaker. We present a safety protocol as a procedure before applying NMES in pacemaker patients. In 4 patients with chronic heart failure, NMES was applied under supervised conditions for 20 minutes to evaluate the individual risk. No changes in the clinical state and no complications secondary to electromagnetic field interference were observed. A check of pacemaker function after this 20-minute stimulation revealed no changes in the pacemaker parameters. After a thorough safety protocol, NMES of knee extensor muscles in patients with pacemakers appears to be safe.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, General Hospital Vienna, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. guenther.wiesinger@akh-wien.ac.at
authors.forename: G F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Wiesinger
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Crevenna
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Nuhr
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Huelsmann
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Fialka-Moser
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Quittan
mesh_terms: D004558:Electric Stimulation; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D016027:Heart Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal; D010138:Pacemaker, Artificial; D017933:Peripheral Nervous System; D011300:Preoperative Care