Enabling and disabling anti-tachyarrhythmia pacing in a concomitant medical device system

• US 9,844,675 B2
• Filed: 04/29/2016
• Issued: 12/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Hareland, Scott A., Carney, James K., Reinke, James D., Schell, Jon D., Schmid, Barbara J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kahelin, Michael
• Application Number:
  US15/143,038
• Publication Number:
  US 20170312514A1
• Time in Patent Office: 599 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3621 for treating or preventing abnormally high heart rate
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37205 Microstimulators, e.g. implantable through a cannula
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37252 Details of algorithms or data aspects of communication system, e.g. handshaking, transmitting specific data or segmenting data
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37288 Communication to several implantable medical devices within one patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3756 Casings with electrodes thereon, e.g. leadless stimulators
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/39 Heart defibrillators
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3962 in combination with another heart therapy
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/39622 Pacing therapy
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3987 characterised by the timing or triggering of the shock

Abstract

An implantable medical device comprising a signal generator configured to generate and deliver anti-tachyarrhythmia pacing (ATP) to a heart of a patient and processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to detect an enable event, responsive to detecting the enable event, enable the delivery of ATP by the signal generator, detect a disable event indicating that another implantable medical device cannot be relied upon to deliver an anti-tachyarrhythmia shock, and responsive to detecting the disable event, disable delivery of ATP.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

detecting, by an implantable medical device configured to deliver anti-tachyarrhythmia pacing (ATP) to a heart of a patient, an enable event;

responsive to detecting the enable event, enabling, by the implantable medical device, the delivery of ATP;

responsive to detecting the enable event, starting, by the implantable medical device, a timer;

detecting, by the implantable medical device, a disable event indicating that another implantable medical device cannot be relied upon to deliver an anti-tachyarrhythmia shock, wherein detecting the disable event comprises detecting that the timer has reached a time limit without requiring communication between the implantable medical device and the other implantable medical device; and

responsive to detecting the disable event, disabling, by the implantable medical device, delivery of ATP.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the enable event comprises receiving, by the implantable medical device, an enable signal from an external device via wireless communication.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the enable event is a first enable event, further comprising:

detecting, by the implantable medical device after starting the timer, a second enable event; and

responsive to detecting the second enable event, restarting, by the implantable medical device, the timer.

4. The method of claim 3,

wherein detecting the second enable event comprises detecting the second enable event after disabling the delivery of ATP,

the method further comprising, responsive to detecting the second enable event, enabling, by the implantable medical device, delivery of ATP.

5. The method of claim 1,

wherein the implantable medical device comprises an intracardiac pacemaker configured for implantation in the heart, and

wherein the other implantable medical device comprises an extracardiovascular implantable cardiac defibrillator configured for extracardiovascular implantation in the patient.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to detecting the disable event, generating, by the implantable medical device, a disable alert.

7. A method comprising:

detecting, by an implantable medical device configured to deliver anti-tachyarrhythmia pacing (ATP) to a heart of a patient, an enable event;

responsive to detecting the enable event, enabling, by the implantable medical device, the delivery of ATP;

responsive to detecting the enable event, starting, by the implantable medical device, a timer;

detecting, by the implantable medical device, a disable event indicating that another implantable medical device cannot be relied upon to deliver an anti-tachyarrhythmia shock, wherein detecting the disable event comprises detecting that the timer has reached a time limit;

responsive to detecting the disable event, disabling, by the implantable medical device, delivery of ATP;

detecting, by the implantable medical device via a plurality of electrodes, cardiac therapy activity; and

modifying, by the implantable medical device, the timer based on detection of the cardiac therapy activity.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein detecting the enable event comprises detecting, by the implantable medical device, a signal, wherein the signal is generated by the other implantable medical device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein detecting the enable event comprises detecting the signal via wireless communication.

10. The method of claim 7,

wherein detecting the cardiac therapy activity comprises detecting delivery of one or more anti-tachyarrhythmia shocks, and

wherein modifying the timer comprises shortening the time limit in response to detecting the delivery of the one or more anti-tachyarrhythmia shocks.

11. A method comprising:

detecting, by an implantable medical device configured to deliver anti-tachyarrhythmia pacing (ATP) to a heart of a patient, an enable event;

responsive to detecting the enable event, enabling, by the implantable medical device, the delivery of ATP;

detecting, by the implantable medical device, a disable event indicating that another implantable medical device cannot be relied upon to deliver an anti-tachyarrhythmia shock, wherein detecting the disable event comprises detecting delivery of a threshold number of anti-tachyarrhythmia shocks, thereby suggesting that the other implantable medical device cannot be relied upon to deliver an anti-tachyarrhythmia shock; and

responsive to detecting the disable event, disabling, by the implantable medical device, delivery of ATP.