title: Wearable cardioverter defibrillator: a life vest till the life boat (ICD) arrives.
abstract: It is well established that implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) is a life saving device ensuring protection against life threatening ventricular arrhythmias. But there are certain situations like a recent myocardial infarction where the standard guidelines do not recommend the implantation of an ICD while the patient can still be at a risk of demise due to a life threatening ventricular arrhythmia. There could also be a temporary indication for protection while explanting an infected ICD system. The wearable cardioverter defibrillator (WCD) is a device which comes to the rescue in such situations. In this brief review, we discuss the historical aspects of the development of a WCD, technical aspects as well as the clinical trial data and real world scenario of its use.
authors.affiliation: Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, Baby Memorial Hospital, Calicut, Kerala 673004, India. Electronic address: pulikkottil2002@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Johnson
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Francis
authors.affiliation: Hirslanden Medical Center, Rain 34, CH 5001 Aarau, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Sven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Reek
mesh_terms: D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D047548:Defibrillators; D017147:Defibrillators, Implantable; D004554:Electric Countershock / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004630:Emergencies; D004867:Equipment Design; D004869:Equipment Safety; D006801:Humans; D061214:Patient Safety; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate; D017180:Tachycardia, Ventricular / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Cardioversion; Death; Defibrillation; Sudden; Tachyarrhythmias