Pacemaker with improved automatic output regulation
AssigneeTelectronics N.V.
InventorsFrancis J. Callaghan, William Vollmann
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pacemaker which is provided with an improved automatic regulation circuit which is capable of distinguishing between a fashion beat and loss of capture. The failure to sense an evoked potential following a stimulus may be due to either. The cause is determined by generating a high-energy back-up pulse shortly after the stimulus. Failure to capture by the back-up pulse is an indication that there was just a fusion beat; the sensing of an evoked potential is an indication that the stimulus failed to capture.
Claims11
A pacemaker comprising means for generating pacing pulses;
- means for adjusting the magnitude of said pacing pulses;
- means for sensing an evoked potential following the generation of a pacing pulse in order to determine if an adjustment is required in the magnitude of said pacing pulses;
- and means responsive to the failure to sense an evoked potential following the generation of a pacing pulse for increasing the pacing rate so that if said failure was due to a fusion beat, then the next pacing pulse is more likely to result in a heart capture.
A method of operating a pacemaker comprising the steps of generating pacing pulses;
- adjusting the magnitude of said pacing pulses;
- sensing an evoked potential following the generation of a pacing pulse in order to determine if an adjustment is required in the magnitude of said pacing pulses;
- and responsive to the failure to sense an evoked potential following the generation of a pacing pulse, increasing the pacing rate so that if said failure was due to a fusion beat, then the next pacing pulse is more likely to result in a heart capture.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.