title: A pilot study of implantable cardiac device interrogation by emergency department personnel.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Implanted devices (eg, pacemakers and defibrillators) provide valuable information and may be interrogated to obtain diagnostic information and to direct management. During admission to an emergency department (ED), significant time and cost are spent waiting for device manufacturer representatives or cardiologists to access the data. If ED personnel could safely interrogate implanted devices, more rapid disposition could occur, thus leading to potentially better outcomes at a reduced cost. This was a pilot study examining the feasibility of ED device interrogation.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a prospective convenience sample study of patients presenting to the ED with any chief complaint and who had an implantable device capable of being interrogated by a Medtronic reader. After obtaining informed consent, study patients underwent device interrogation by ED research personnel. After reviewing the device data, the physician documented their opinions of the value of data in aiding care. Patients were followed up at intervals ranging from 30 days out to 1 year to determine adverse events relating to interrogation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-four patients underwent device interrogation. Their mean age was 56 ± 14.7 years (range, 28-83), 75% (33/44) were male and 75% (33/44) were hospitalized from the ED. The interrogations took less than 10 minutes 89% of the time. In 60% of the cases, ED physicians reported the data-assisted patient care. No adverse events were reported relating to the ED interrogations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this pilot study, we found that ED personnel can safely and quickly interrogate implantable devices to obtain potentially useful clinical data.
authors: From the *Department of Emergency Medicine, Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH; †Department of Emergency Medicine, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, NC; ‡Department of Emergency Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; §Department of Radiology, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, NC; ¶Department of Emergency Medicine, Sunrise Hospital, Las Vegas, NV; and ‖Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH.
authors: James F
authors: JF
authors: Neuenschwander
authors: Brian C
authors: BC
authors: Hiestand
authors: W Frank
authors: WF
authors: Peacock
authors: John M
authors: JM
authors: Billings
authors: Cole
authors: C
authors: Sondrup
authors: John D
authors: JD
authors: Hummel
authors: William T
authors: WT
authors: Abraham
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017147:Defibrillators, Implantable / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011446:Prospective Studies