Open AccessCardiac implantable electrical devices in women
Author(s) -
Elango Kalaimani,
Curtis Anne B.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
clinical cardiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.263
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1932-8737
pISSN - 0160-9289
DOI - 10.1002/clc.22903
Subject(s) - medicine , cardiac resynchronization therapy , sick sinus syndrome , implantable cardioverter defibrillator , incidence (geometry) , cardiac pacemaker , cardiology , heart failure , clinical trial , ejection fraction , physics , optics
Clinical trials have demonstrated the benefits of cardiac implantable electrical devices, which include pacemakers, implantable cardioverter‐defibrillators (ICDs), and cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT), with respect to key clinical outcomes and survival. Women more often require permanent pacing for sick sinus syndrome, whereas atrioventricular block is more common in men. Women appear to have a higher incidence of complications with pacemaker implantation, as well as with ICD and CRT implantation. The indications for ICDs and CRT do not have any distinctions based on sex, and outcomes are comparable in men and women. In fact, women often seem to have better outcomes with CRT compared with men. Despite the demonstrated benefits of these devices, ICDs and CRT are underutilized in women. In this review, we explore sex differences in utilization, outcomes, and complications with pacemakers, ICDs, and CRT.