RATE-SCANNING PACER FOR TREATMENT OF TACHYCARDIA

• US 3,698,398 A
• Filed: 11/06/1970
• Issued: 10/17/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/1970
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Warner-Lambert Company (Pfizer Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Barouh V. Berkovits
• Inventors: Berkovits, Barouh V.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kamm, William E.
• Application Number:
  US05/087,387
• Time in Patent Office: 711 Days
• Field of Search: 128/419P,419R,421,422,423
• US Class Current: 607/15
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/362 Heart stimulators heart defibrillators A61N1/39
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3621 for treating or preventing abnormally high heart rate
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37 Monitoring; Protecting

Abstract

An externally activated implantable rate-scanning heart pacer. Apparatus is disclosed for supplying to the heart of a patient a burst of stimulating pulses in which each successive interval between pulses of the burst is different in duration from the next previous interval. All of these intervals can correspond to repetition rates that lie within the physiological heartbeat range of the patient. The pacer comprises terminals for connection to the heart, a controllable electrical stimuli generator controlled internally by a discharging capacitor and controlled externally by a magnet. The pacer is particularly applicable to the treatment of paroxysmal supra-ventricular tachycardias, a rapid heartbeat condition originating in the atrium. The pacer can be temporarily activated by the patient.

Claims

1. A heart pacer for stimulating the heart of a patient, said pacer comprising terminal means for connection to the heart of said patient, pulse generator means for generating electrical stimuli on said terminal means at a varying repetition rate within the normal physiological heartbeat rate-range of said patient, said pulse generator means including means for automatically maintaining each interval between stimuli different in duration from the next most previous interval and from the next successive interval.

2. A heart pacer as recited in claim 1 and wherein said pulse generator means includes rate increasing means for causing said rate to continuously increase.

3. A heart pacer as recited in claim 1 and wherein said pulse generator means includes rate decreasing means for causing said rate to continuously decrease.

4. A heart pacer as recited in claim 1 further comprising control means for controlling duration of operation of said pulse generator means.

5. A heart pacer as recited in claim 4 and wherein said control means comprises a reed switch and a magnet, the field of said magnet arranged to operate said switch.

6. A heart pacer as recited in claim 5 and wherein said pacer, except for said magnet, is implantable within said patient and said magnet is adapted to be positioned externally adjacent said patient.

7. A heart pacer as recited in claim 1 further including a self varying source of voltage and said pulse generator being energized by said self-varying source of voltage.

8. A heart pacer as recited in claim 4 and wherein said control means includes automatic means for automatically terminating the generation of said stimuli after a predetermined time.