MRI-safe defibrillator electrodes
First Claim
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1. An implanted medical device, comprising:
- a cardioverter defibrillator capable of generating a pulse sufficient to defibrillate a heart of a patient; and
a lead coupled at a proximal end to the cardioverter defibrillator and having a distal end position within the heart of the patient, the distal end of the lead having a defibrillation electrode slideably coupled to a conductor and biased to be in electrical contact with the cardioverter defibrillator outside the presence of an MRI field;
wherein the defibrillation electrode slides away from the conductor in the presence of an MRI field such that induced voltages are not electrically coupled to the cardioverter defibrillator.
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Abstract
The present invention reduces patient risks associated with RF-induced thermogenic tissue damage and with pulsed gradient-field-induced arrhythmias by using a defibrillator lead having a self-healing dielectric material that prevents induced voltages from MRI equipment from damaging an ICD or causing unintended defibrillation shocks to a patient. Another aspect of the present invention utilizes a sliding contact arrangement to prevent induced voltages from MRI equipment from being electrically coupled to an ICD thereby reducing patient risks associated with RF-induced thermogenic tissue damage and with pulsed gradient-field-induced arrhythmias.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. An implanted medical device, comprising:
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a cardioverter defibrillator capable of generating a pulse sufficient to defibrillate a heart of a patient; and a lead coupled at a proximal end to the cardioverter defibrillator and having a distal end position within the heart of the patient, the distal end of the lead having a defibrillation electrode slideably coupled to a conductor and biased to be in electrical contact with the cardioverter defibrillator outside the presence of an MRI field; wherein the defibrillation electrode slides away from the conductor in the presence of an MRI field such that induced voltages are not electrically coupled to the cardioverter defibrillator. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. An implanted medical device system comprising:
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an implantable medical device; and a lead coupled at a proximal end to the implantable medical device and having a distal end positioned within the heart of the patient, the distal end of the lead having an electrode slideably coupled to a conductor and biased to be in electrical contact with the implantable medical device outside the presence of a magnetic field; wherein the electrode slides away from the conductor in the presence of a magnetic field. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification