The world’s smallest pacemaker

Maryland: The University of Maryland Medical Center’s Stephen Shorofsky, MD, PhD, was one of the first doctors in Maryland to implant the world’s smallest pacemaker for patients with bradycardia. Recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Micra® Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) is a new type of heart device that provides patients with the most advanced pacing technology at one-tenth the size of a traditional pacemaker. Micra is the only leadless pacemaker approved for use in the U.S.

Immune cells shown to be essential to a healthy heart rhythm

Harvard: Harvard Medical School researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have identified a surprising new role for macrophages, the white blood cells primarily known for removing pathogens, cellular debris and other unwanted materials from the body. In a paper published in Cell on April 20, they describe their discovery of how macrophages are also essential for the healthy functioning of the heart by helping conduct the electric signals that coordinate the heartbeat.

Heart researchers revealed how a faulty gene can cause fatal abnormal heart rhythms (video)

University of Manchester researchers, funded by the British Heart Foundation, have revealed how a faulty gene can cause fatal abnormal heart rhythms that are brought on by exercise.



 
Dangerous heart rhythms called arrhythmias, often caused by undiagnosed heart conditions, can cause sudden cardiac arrests that take the lives of seemingly healthy young men and women including sports people.

Drug developed in 1950 for the treatment of Lupus to treat heart rhythm disease

British Heart Foundation: Scientists at the University of Oxford, part funded by us, are using a drug developed in 1950 for the treatment of Lupus to lower an abnormally high heart rate in those with heart failure and high blood pressure. Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) was created to combat malaria, and was later found to be useful in the treatment of Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Now, a team at the University of Oxford has found that the drug can also reduce heart rate. Published today in the journal Heart Rhythm,  the treatment has the potential to benefit people with heart failure, high blood pressure, angina and other heart conditions.

The effectiveness of the Valsalva Manoeuvre for stopping an abnormal heart rhythm

Cochrane: Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) is a common heart abnormality that presents as a fast heart rate. This heart rhythm disturbance can occur in healthy individuals and may include such symptoms as chest pain, palpitations, shortness of breath, sweating, and feeling faint. In rarer instances, unconsciousness may occur. The treatment of SVT is usually a combination of physical straining manoeuvres (also known as vagal manoeuvres), medications, or electrical therapy (used in severe cases where blood pressure drops to a low level).

Simple model explains complex problems in an ageing heart

Imperial college. UK: Scientists at Imperial College London have developed a model that helps explain why we are more likely to develop an abnormal heartbeat with age. The simple mathematical model also suggests why current treatments for the condition are not always successful.