What is ventricular fibrillation undersensing?

Ventricular fibrillation (VF), uninterrupted, is fatal within minutes. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) sense ventricular electrograms (EGMs) during VF and detect the VF rhythm (a sequence of VF sensed events) to deliver a shock to terminate VF and save lives. VF sensing and detection in Medtronic ICDs has been reported to be highly sensitive. However, Castellano et al. reported that Medtronic ICDs have the potential for high levels of undersensing in VF, sufficient to underdetect VF and withhold life-saving therapy.

Source: Journal of Electrocardiology - August 24, 2018 Category: Cardiology Authors: Mark L. Brown Source Type: research