Acoustic body bus medical device communication system

A system for providing pacing, cardioversion and defibrillation staged therapies for bradycardia, tachycardia and fibrillation of a patient's heart, comprising:

• (A) a body implantable pacemaker comprising:
• (1) pacing energy pulse generator means for applying pacing stimuli to said heart;
• (2) pacing lead means bearing at least one electrode means adapted to be placed in contact with or within said heart and coupled to said pulse generator means for applying said pacing stimuli to said heart and receiving electrical signals appearing at the tissue-electrode interface;
• (3) sensing means coupled to said electrode means for sensing electrical signals appearing at said electrode means;
• (4) detecting means responsive to said sensing means for detecting a bradyarrhythmia, tachyarrhythmia or ventricular fibrillation condition of said heart;
• (5) first control means responsive to said detecting means for instructing said pulse generator means to provide;
• (a) pacing stimuli to said pacing electrode means in response to the detection of a bradyarrhythmia or tacharrhythmia condition;
• and
• (b) an encoded defibrillation shock control command in response to the detection of a ventricular fibrillation condition, said encoded defibrillation shock command comprising a predetermined modulated first medium frequency signal in the frequency range from 10 to 100 kHz;
• and
• (6) first acoustic transducer means acoustically coupled to the body fluids and tissue of said patient for transducing said encoded defibrillation shock control command into modulated ultrasonic acoustic waves for transmission into said body fluids and tissue as a function of said modulated first medium frequency signal;
• and
• (B) a remotely implanted defibrillator comprising:
• (1) defibrillation pulse generator means for generating defibrillation shocks;
• (2) defibrillation electrode means adapted to be placed in contact with said heart for providing defibrillation shocks thereto;
• (3) second acoustic transducer means acoustically coupled to said body fluids and tissue for transducing said modulated ultrasonic acoustic waves transmitted from said pacemaker into said modulated first medium frequency signal;
• (4) receiving means coupled to said second acoustic transducer means for demodulating said modulated first medium frequency signal into a decoded defibrillator shock control command;
• and
• (5) second control means responsive to said decoded shock control command for instructing said defibrillation pulse generator to provide a defibrillation shock across said defibrillation electrode means as a function of said decoded shock control command.