What is an implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD)?

An ICD is a device designed to treat life-threatening heart rhythm abnormalities. In addition, it has the functions of a pacemaker and can actually help some types of heart failure to improve. The device is implanted below the collarbone on either the left or right side of your chest. It has one, two, or three wires that travel through the main vein below your collar bone into your heart. The procedure to implant it typically takes 1-2 hours. The defibrillator will monitor your heartbeat at all times. If your heart goes into a fast rhythm, it will deliver specialized pacing or even a shock. This is very effective in restoring the heart to its normal rhythm. If the heart beats too slowly, then the pacemaker function takes over and prevents your heart from going so slow that you would symptoms. Some people even have the pacemaker working all the time and maintaining their heartbeat continuously. If you have a special type of abnormal heartbeat due to a damaged heart, then the three-lead system can cause your heart to beat in a more effective way and many people have a decrease in symptoms and an increase in heart function. Whether you need an implanted defibrillator and should it be the kind with one, two, or three wires is determined by a cardiac electrophysiologist. Be certain you ask the doctor if he is an electrophysiologist and if he specializes in this procedure: It can make a difference in the results you get.

An implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD) is a battery-powered device slightly larger than a matchbox that is implanted under the skin just below the collar bone. It is used to correct and regulate the heart rhythm, and some types are used to help improve heart function.

The implantable cardiac defibrillator has a computer chip that continuously records your heart rhythm and looks for abnormalities. If the heartbeat slows too much or stops, the defibrillator acts like a pacemaker and speeds up the heartbeat to a normal rhythm. If the heartbeat goes dangerously fast (which can be fatal), the defibrillator corrects the rhythm by giving a series of electrical pulses or by giving an electrical shock to the heart. Some defibrillators (called biventricular ICDs) are very helpful in making the heart chambers work in unison. This can improve heart function considerably.

Surgery for an ICD takes an hour or two, and is usually performed under local anesthesia or in twilight sleep. The patient can go home the same day or perhaps the next day. The surgical risk is low, less than 1 percent. The battery pack lasts five to seven years, after which it is changed in a 30-minute outpatient surgery.

The ICD can be checked through your phone line or the Internet. It does not prevent you from living a full life. It is your reliable friend, silent but available to help in an instant.

An ICD (implantable cardioverter-defibrillator) is a small battery powered electrical impulse generator which is totally implantable.  This device has onboard software which endeavors to detect abnormal rhythms of the heart which are predominantly ventricular tachycardia (VT) and ventricular fibrillation (VF).  The device is programmed to detect the ventricular arrhythmia and correct it by using pulses from the device, or alternatively, by delivering a discharge of the defibrillator (shock).  In the current era, all implantable cardioverter-defibrillators have a pacemaker function built into their platform that it may allow for a pacemaker function in cases in which the heart rate is slowed to a dangerous level.