KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- The Keesler Medical Center is the first Air Force hospital to offer the world’s smallest pacemaker for patients with bradycardia. Keesler medical professions will fit the hospital’s first patient with this pacemaker Thursday, April 13.
The Micra Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) is a new type of heart device that provides patients with the most advanced pacing technology at one-tenth the size of a traditional pacemaker.
That morning, prior to the procedure members of the Keesler medical team are available to media to discuss the new technology and treatment they will be providing. Later that day, released images of the procedure will be loaded to DVIDS (www.dvidshub.net) for use in media products.
Bradycardia is a condition characterized by a slow or irregular heart rhythm, usually fewer than 60 beats per minute. At this rate, the heart is unable to pump enough oxygen-rich blood to the body during normal activity or exercise, causing dizziness, fatigue, shortness of breath or fainting spells. Pacemakers are the most common way to treat bradycardia to help restore the heart's normal rhythm and relieve symptoms by sending electrical impulses to the heart to increase the heart rate.
Comparable in size to a large vitamin, physicians at Keesler elected to use Medtronic’s Micra TPS because unlike traditional pacemakers, the device does not require cardiac wires (leads) or a surgical “pocket” under the skin to deliver a pacing therapy. Instead, the device is small enough to be delivered through a catheter and implanted directly into the heart with small tines, providing a safe alternative to conventional pacemakers without the complications associated with leads – all while being cosmetically invisible. The Micra TPS is also designed to automatically adjust pacing therapy based on a patient’s activity levels.
Media is invited to cover this event Thursday, April 13, at 9 a.m. To RSVP, or get more information, please contact the 81st Training Wing Public Affairs Office by Wednesday, April 12, at 3 p.m., at 228-377-2783 or e-mail 81trw.pa@us.af.mil.