title: The story of … a lead.
abstract: The totally transvenous implantable defibrillator lead, conceived by Mirowski and Mower 45 years ago, is irrevocably related to the wide acceptance of this therapy. It paved the way for the era for non-thoracotomy implantation. This paper covers the most important details of the evolution--over this 45-year period--of the original (ENDOTAK) transvenous ICD lead and subsequent iterations. Over that time period, there have been over 800 000 patients implanted with this family of leads. The 'story' addresses the multiple problems encountered, technological improvements in materials, design, and testing to overcome them. And, the need for continued close collaboration between physicians and industry focused on reliability and longevity of this critical component of these life-saving systems.
authors.affiliation: Nisam Consultancy SPRL, Bierges, Belgium seahnisam@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Seah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nisam
authors.affiliation: Boston Scientific Corporation, St. Paul, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Shantanu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Reddy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000266:history / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017147:Defibrillators, Implantable / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000266:history / Q000639:trends; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D004554:Electric Countershock / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000266:history / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000639:trends; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Implantable defibrillator (ICD); Transvenous lead