Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M J Kallok

Publications and source records attributed to M J Kallok.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Double and triple sequential shocks reduce ventricular defibrillation threshold in dogs with and without myocardial infarction.

The role of optimal placement of electrodes and mode of shock delivery from a defibrillator was examined in dogs with and without myocardial infarction. Single, double and triple truncated exponential shocks separated by 1 ms were delivered through various electrode combinations and cardiac vectors after electrical induction of ventricular fibrillation. A single shock through a pathway not incorporating the interventricular septum (catheter electrodes or epicardial patches between anterior and posterior left ventricle) required the highest total energy (22.6 and greater than 26.4 J, respectively) and peak voltage (1,004 and greater than 1,094 V, respectively) to terminate ventricular fibrillation. A single shock through a pathway including the interventricular septum required lower total energy and peak voltage to defibrillate. Combinations of two sequential shocks between an intracardiac catheter electrode and anterior left ventricular epicardial patch, between the catheter electrode and subcutaneous extrathoracic plate and between three ventricular epicardial patches all significantly reduced total energy (7.7, 8.7 and 7.8 J, respectively) and peak voltage (424, 436 and 424 V, respectively) needed to defibrillate. Three sequential shocks exerted no significant additional reduction in total energy of the defibrillation threshold than did two sequential shocks. Infarcted canine heart required less peak voltage but not total energy to terminate ventricular fibrillation than did noninfarcted heart. Therefore, two sequential shocks over different pathways reduce both total energy and peak voltage required to terminate ventricular fibrillation.

Animals↗

Temporal stability of sequential pulse defibrillation threshold.

We have shown that sequential pulse defibrillation threshold voltage and total delivered energy do not change with maturation of the electrode tissue interface for up to 12 weeks after implantation of two different electrode configurations. This result is important to predict the future performance of an implantable defibrillator that is tested only at implant.

Animals↗

Internal cardiac defibrillation in man: pronounced improvement with sequential pulse delivery to two different lead orientations.

Wider applicability of an implantable automatic defibrillator depends on achieving internal cardiac defibrillation consistently with the lowest possible energy. In animal studies, we have found that the cardiac defibrillation threshold could be reduced when sequential shocks separated in time and spacially arranged were delivered to the heart. We compared internal cardiac defibrillation using a single pulse shock delivered through an intravascular catheter with this new method for internal cardiac defibrillation in patients undergoing cardiac surgery for the correction of arrhythmias. For the single pulse shock and the first pulse of the sequential pulse shock, current was passed through an intravascular catheter with the catheter cathode at the apex of the right ventricle and the anode at the superior vena cava-atrial junction region. The second pulse of the sequential pulse countershock was delivered between the catheter cathode in the right ventricular apex and an oval plaque electrode secured on the laterobasal left ventricular epicardium as anode. With the single pulse alone for shock delivery, 12 patients could be defibrillated with an average of 20.1 +/- 16.8 J, with a corresponding leading-edge peak voltage and current of 836 +/- 319 V and 9.4 +/- 4.5 A, respectively. However, two of the patients could not be defibrillated with energies below 50 J. With the sequential pulse shock delivery, a significant reduction in all values were recorded. Mean total energy for defibrillation averaged 7.7 +/- 6.0 J. Leading-edge peak voltage and current from the catheter averaged 430 +/- 148 V and 5.0 +/- 2.8 A, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

Improved internal defibrillation with twin pulse sequential energy delivery to different lead orientations in pigs.

Internal cardiac defibrillation with an intravascular catheter was compared with a new method for internal cardiac defibrillation using 2 pulses delivered in sequence directly to the myocardium. For the sequential pulses, the first pulse was passed through an intravascular catheter (Medtronic 6880), between the anode in the superior vena cava-atrial junction region and the cathode in the apex of the right ventricle. The second pulse was delivered between the catheter tip in the right ventricular apex as cathode and an oval plaque electrode (Medtronic TX-7) secured on the epicardium of the left ventricular free wall as anode. Defibrillation pulses were of truncated, trapezoidal waveform (65% tilt), separated by 1, 10 and 100 ms. Using the catheter alone, 36 normal pig hearts could be defibrillated by 44 J. However, 22 pig hearts (60%) could not be defibrillated with energies below 35 J. Defibrillation threshold was improved with sequential twin pulses, the improvement being dependent on pulse separation (42, 34 and 19 J, at 100-, 10- and 1-ms separation, respectively; F = 14.6, df = 2.29, p less than 0.01). In conclusion, sequential twin pulse defibrillation provides a considerable reduction in energy necessary for defibrillation in comparison to single pulses using the catheter alone. In this study, the optimal separation was 1 ms.

Animals↗

Catheter electrode defibrillation in dogs: threshold dependence on implant time and catheter stability.

A catheter-mounted electrode system designed for intracavitary ventricular defibrillation was implanted in the right ventricular apex of 12 dogs. Defibrillation thresholds were obtained in all dogs at the time of implant using an external defibrillator. Roentgenograms obtained 3 weeks after catheter implantation revealed that six dogs had catheters intact at the site of implant (group A) and six dogs had catheters that had dislodged from the original implant site (group B). There were no statistically significant differences (p less than 0.05) in mean body weight or mean defibrillation threshold between group A and group B dogs, respectively, at implant. Defibrillation thresholds were obtained for both groups of animals at 5, 12, and 26 weeks after catheter implantation. At all post implant monitors mean threshold for group B was significantly higher (p less than 0.05) than mean threshold for group A. Moreover, mean defibrillation threshold for both groups had increased by week 5 and remained stable through week 26. Catheter dislodgement increases defibrillation threshold, but does not prevent successful defibrillation. Also, defibrillation threshold increases to a stable value by 5 weeks post implant.

Animals↗

Inhibition of premature ventricular extrastimuli by subthreshold conditioning stimuli.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether trains of subthreshold high frequency conditioning stimuli (333 Hz, 1 ms duration, 2 ms interval) delivered to the canine ventricle inhibited the response to a premature stimulus (S2) more effectively than did a single subthreshold conditioning stimulus. It was found that trains of conditioning stimuli (mean 1.21 mA) inhibited the response to S2 152 ms beyond expiration of the ventricular effective refractory period, whereas a single conditioning stimulus inhibited S2 only 20 ms or less beyond the ventricular effective refractory period. In late diastole, trains of conditioning stimuli failed to inhibit S2 when the train of stimuli caused ventricular depolarization or the latter occurred in response to the next sinus impulse. Trains of conditioning stimuli did not induce ventricular arrhythmias. Lidocaine or autonomic blockade did not alter the response to trains of conditioning stimuli. Trains of conditioning stimuli or a single conditioning stimulus inhibited the response to S2 only when they were delivered at the same electrode site. By lengthening the ventricular effective refractory period, trains of conditioning stimuli could prevent or terminate tachycardias, but this possibility is constrained, at present, by the spatial limitations of the technique.

Animals↗

Implantable defibrillator electrode systems: a brief review.

Since the first report of a defibrillation attempt with an intracardiac catheter electrode nearly 30 years ago, investigators have developed implantable electrode systems consisting of metal disks, endocardial catheters, and epicardial patches. These early efforts demonstrated the feasibility of low-energy reversion of ventricular tachyarrhythmias, and also provided some insight into the mechanisms of fibrillation and defibrillation. This review describes the evolution of implantable defibrillator electrode systems. Early investigators attempted defibrillation with submuscularly implanted metal disks or a disk electrode paired with an endocardial catheter electrode. Electrode design emphasis turned to transvenous catheter systems with electrodes placed in the right ventricle and right atrium. A more successful configuration placed the proximal electrode in the superior vena cava. In an effort to ensure proper placement of the distal electrode in humans, the catheter was replaced with an epicardial patch. More recently, a combination of electrodes and multiple pulses has substantially reduced the energy required to defibrillate. Effective electrode systems that can convert lethal arrhythmias with a minimum of energy will aid in making implantable cardioverters and defibrillators the therapy of choice in patients at high risk of sudden coronary death.

Arrhythmias, Cardiac↗

Cardiac damage in dogs with chronically implanted automatic defibrillator electrode catheters and given four episodes of multiple shocks.

In 14 dogs, a newly designed automatic defibrillator electrode catheter with paired ventricular and superior vena caval electrodes was implanted transvenously into the right ventricular (RV) apex for 26 weeks. Twelve dogs were given multiple (mean total = 21.3) near-threshold (mean delivered energy = 17.6 joules) shocks via the lead at 0, 5, 12, and 26 weeks after implantation. Two days after the last shocks, the dogs were killed and the cardiac alterations were evaluated at necropsy and by histopathology. The lead induced mild to moderate cardiac alterations of (1) endocardial fibrosis, either as flat or papillary lesions, and of (2) segments of smooth thin fibrous sheath formation over the lead with adhesions to the adjacent endocardium. Mild cardiac alterations were induced by the shocks including myocardial necrosis and calcification, concentrated in the ventricular septum and RV free wall adjacent to the ventricular electrodes, and foci of postnecrotic fibrosis. The chronically implanted lead was determined to be safe and effective in dogs.

Animals↗

Axial distortion of airways in the lung.

Axial loads were applied around the circumference of an airway lumen by pulling on a cup-shaped anchor that embedded itself in the airway wall. Axial displacements were measured as a function of distance from the load, and the data were compared to the results of mathematical analyses of continuum mechanics models. In the modeling it was assumed that the elastic tube representing the airway is bonded to the surrounding elastic continuum representing the parenchyma and that axial forces are transmitted between the tube and the continuum by shear stresses at the interface. The agreement between the measured and computed axial displacements supports the hypothesis that the shear stresses are the dominant coupling mechanism. The following quantitative relations between force and displacement were obtained. The axial displacement produced by the load L was approximately 0.05 L/pi alpha mu, where alpha is the airway radius and mu is the shear modulus of the parenchyma. The displacement decayed to approximately one-half this maximal value at two diameters from the load.

Animals↗

Low energy countershock using an intravascular catheter in an acute cardiac care setting.

We examined the feasibility, effectiveness, and safety of using an intravascular catheter positioned in the right ventricular apex for countershock in a coronary care unit setting in 8 patients who had recurrent ventricular tachyarrhythmia. Countershock using 2.5 to 40 J stored energy (damped sinusoidal wave form) was attempted 115 times to terminate 100 episodes of ventricular tachyarrhythmia (ventricular tachycardia, 91; ventricular flutter, 3; ventricular fibrillation, 6). Eighty-six (87%) of 99 countershock attempts for ventricular tachycardia, 3 (60%) of 5 for ventricular flutter, and 4 (36%) of 11 for ventricular fibrillation were successful using this technique. The catheters remained in stable position for 1 to 16 days without dislodgment. A majority of the countershocks were delivered by the regular nursing staff in the coronary unit. We conclude that low energy countershock through an intravascular catheter system is feasible, safe, and effective in a coronary care unit setting. Such a system should be beneficial in the acute management of patients who have recurrent ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation. The catheter lead may also prove useful in managing ventricular tachyarrhythmias that occur during electrophysiologic studies.

Adult↗

Bronchial-arterial interdependence in isolated dog lung.

The bronchus and artery, embedded in the lung parenchyma, were modeled as adjoining cylindrical tubes in an elastic continuum. Solutions using finite-element analysis of nonuniform stress and strain occurring from an initial uniform state were computed for a reduction in arterial pressure. Maximal nonuniform principal and shear stresses in the parenchyma, equal to 2.5 times the mean periarterial stresses, occurred in the region adjacent to the bronchial-arterial joint. Bronchial cross section became oval and elongated along the line passing through the centers of the tubes, whereas arterial cross section elongated at right angles to this line. These predicted changes in shape of bronchus and artery were verified by radiographic measurements in isolated lobes, held at constant transpulmonary pressures of 4 and 25 cmH2O while arterial pressure was varied. Results suggest that peribronchovascular interstitial fluid pressure may be nonuniform and that the bronchial-arterial joint may be the preferential site for emphysematous perivascular lesions, which may occur on lung hyperinflation.

Animals↗

Lung deformations at minimal volume.

Minimal volume (MV, gas plus tissue volume at zero transpulmonary pressure) was determined in excised dog lobes after inflation with air and with saline. MV was significantly greater in saline-filled lobes than air-filled lobes. Air inflation was performed with the lobe supported in two different ways, which were chosen to produce different deformations: 1) supported on the cephalic surface and 2) hung by strings attached to the cephalic surface. MV measured in hung lobes was significantly greater than MV measured in supported lobes. The problem of excised lobes deformed by gravity was analyzed in the two configurations using linear elasticity. The saline volume was assumed to be the stress-free state for the lobe, and the volume change was computed from the stress-free state due to the gravitational deformation. The analysis suggests that the difference between saline and air MV is due primarily to the gravitational deformation of air-filled lungs.

Air↗

Distribution of regional volumes and ventilation in excised canine lobes.

A linear elasticity solution for the gravitational deformation of excised lungs was obtained. The accuracy of our solution was examined by comparing predicted and measured displacements of markers glued to the surface of canine lower lobes. The equations describing the strains in a lobe were used to predict the distribution of regional volumes and the slope of phase III (S3) of a single-breath oxygen (SBO2) test. The analysis predicted a negative S3. However, S3 was found to be positive in the five lobes tested, suggesting that factors other than gravity were responsible for the observed pattern of ventilation. In SBO2 tests repeated with increasing delays at end inflation, S3 progressively decreased, became negative, and was eventually abolished. Our equations predicted the most negative observed S3 well. We conclude that continuum mechanics can be used to describe the gravitational deformation of lungs and the resulting effect on ventilation distribution.

Animals↗

Sequential pulse defibrillation for implantable defibrillators.

A technique is described that reduces defibrillation threshold for automatic implantable defibrillators, permits either reducing the size of the pulse generator or increasing the effectiveness of the pulse generator, and provides an increased safety factor. Defibrillation threshold was compared in 12 anesthetized dogs with mean (+/- SD) body weight of 21.6 +/- 3.4 kg for two defibrillating modalities: 1) single pulse technique with current flowing from electrodes in the right ventricle to electrodes either in the superior vena cava or on the left ventricular epicardium, and 2) sequential pulse technique. The sequential pulse technique tested uses two pulses and three or four electrodes. Current of the first 5-ms pulse flows from the superior vena caval electrode to an electrode in the right ventricle, and after a 1-ms interval, current of the second pulse flows from electrodes on the left ventricular epicardium to the right ventricular electrode. Ventricular defibrillation threshold was reduced by 56% to 6.3 +/- 1.03 joules (mean +/- SEM) (P less than 0.01). Because defibrillation threshold is less for sequential pulse defibrillation than for conventional techniques, sequential pulse defibrillators can be smaller and more effective than previously available devices.

Animals↗

Optimization of epicardial electrode size and implant site for reduced sequential pulse defibrillation thresholds.

The influence of epicardial electrode surface area and implant site on sequential pulse defibrillation threshold was investigated in four isolated heart preparations. Electrodes with surface areas of 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 cm2 were each sutured, in random order, to the epicardial surface of the isolated heart at each of four sites: mid-ventral left ventricle (LV); mid-dorsal LV; lateral-apical LV; and lateral-basal LV. The epicardial electrode is one of the electrodes in a three-electrode, two-current pathway, sequential pulse system. The first two electrodes, which are catheter-mounted, are located in the right ventricular apex (RVA) and superior vena cava (SVC). In sequential pulse defibrillation, one shock is delivered from the SVC to the RVA, followed 1 msec later by a second shock delivered from the third electrode to the RVA. Sequential pulse defibrillation threshold was obtained with each epicardial electrode used at each site. A single-pulse (SVC to RVA) catheter threshold was also obtained in each heart. The overall mean sequential pulse threshold was 47 per cent less than the mean single-pulse threshold (P less than 0.001). Increasing patch size reduced sequential pulse threshold (P less than 0.03), but no significant effect of patch location could be demonstrated. It is concluded that sequential pulse defibrillation is superior to single-pulse catheter defibrillation and that increasing epicardial patch size is advantageous, although patch location does not influence thresholds in the isolated heart.

Animals↗