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The Noise Sampling Period: A New Cause of Apparent Sensing Malfunction of Demand Pacemakers
Author(s) -
FALKOFF MICHAEL,
ONG LING S.,
HEINLE ROBERT A.,
BAROLD S. SERGE
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
pacing and clinical electrophysiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.686
H-Index - 101
eISSN - 1540-8159
pISSN - 0147-8389
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-8159.1978.tb03469.x
Subject(s) - medicine , refractory period , cardiology , pulse generator , beat (acoustics) , pulse (music) , control theory (sociology) , jitter , telecommunications , acoustics , computer science , physics , detector , control (management) , artificial intelligence
Two patients with Omni‐Stanicor®* pulse generators presented an apparent sensing problem characterized by intermittent reversion to fixed‐rate pacing only during atrial fibrillation with a very rapid ventricular rate, Every fixed‐rate cycle contained two unsensed beats. The first un‐sensed beat fell in the noise sampling period (the last 3/6 of the pacemaker refractory period) and, therefore, disabled the demand function of the pulse generator for a single timing cycle. The presence of two consecutively unsensed beats within one timing cycle (automatic or escape interval) during tachycardia suggests normal function of the noise sampling period of this particular pulse generator, rather than a true sensing problem. The diagnosis becomes evident if the sensing problem disappears when abbreviation of the refractory period occurs by reprogramming the pulse generator at a higher rate.