Editorial
Why biventricular pacing might be of value in refractory heart failure?
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
Ten years ago, an Austrian group proposed implanting dual chamber pacemakers in advanced heart failure patients who did not meet the usual criteria for a pacing indication.1 Short term results were encouraging. A revolutionary idea was born: using cardiac pacing as an adjuvant therapy to medical treatment in drug refractory heart failure.
Meanwhile, however, pharmacological treatment made considerable
progress. Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, 
blockers,
and spironolactone have significantly reduced mortality and morbidity
in New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II-IV patients, while
improving their quality of life.2-4 But that benefit is
probably not permanent and will be limited in time. A variety of
non-pharmacological approaches are available to treat these refractory
heart failure patients. Heart transplant remains the best solution but
it can only be applied to a restricted number of patients. So, for more
than 10 years now, permanent dual chamber pacing with short
atrioventricular delay has been proposed
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This article has been cited by other articles:
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Nielsen, J. C., Bottcher, M., Jensen, H. K., Nielsen, T. T., Pedersen, A. K., Mortensen, P. T.
(2003). Regional myocardial perfusion during chronic biventricular pacing and after acute change of the pacing mode in patients with congestive heart failure and bundle branch block treated with an atrioventricular sequential biventricular pacemaker. Eur J Heart Fail
5: 179-186
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