Implantation of an "extracardiac" internal cardioverter defibrillator in a 6-month-old infant.
In infants and small children, ICD implantation is a challenge due to technical limitations and a significant number of complications. This report describes ICD implantation in a 6-month-old infant (body weight 5.5 kg). A completely extracardiac defibrillation system was implanted using a transvenous lead subcutaneously in the back below the left scapula as the defibrillation electrode and an active-can device in the right upper abdomen. Defibrillation threshold of implantation was < or =10 J. During the follow-up of 3 months, 8 adequate ICD discharges were noted. The technique described seems feasible to facilitate ICD implantation in small infants.
Kriebel
T
T
Department of Pediatric Cardiology and Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Göttingen, Germany. tkriebe@gwdg.de
Ruschewski
W
W
Paul
T
T
D017147:Defibrillators, Implantable; D004567:Electrodes, Implanted; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D019919:Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014693:Ventricular Fibrillation / Q000517:prevention & control*