Over 20% of patients with implanted cardiac defibrillators (ICD) are unlikely to benefit from it. An implanted defibrillator is a device implanted into a person that shocks the heart out of dangerous rhythms (arrhythmia).

Past studies have indicated a similar conclusion, so an investigation was launched to determine the percentage of patients actually benefitting from an ICD.

For the study, about 111,707 patients with ICDs were examined. About 25,145 or 22.5% of devices implanted in patients who did not meet the criteria for ICD use. These patients tended to be older and have other serious health problems. What the researchers also observed is these patients were more likely to die in the hospital, have a greater chance of complications, and have longer hospital stays than patients who did fell within the guidelines.

The main reason for the overuse of ICD is doctors. Doctors may choose to ignore the guidelines because they feel the ICD is needed despite the guidelines or lack the knowledge of the guidelines. Yet, there are many risks to improper implantation. So be sure to ask your doctor if an ICD is really needed or get a second opinion.

Patients under the age of 45 had fewer complications and better improvement after a catheter ablation than older patients reported in a new study.  A catheter ablation is a procedure where tiny tubes send out a heat pulse into the heart to destroy abnormal tissues that cause irregular heartbeat. For this study, catheter ablation was used to treat atrial fibrillation (AF), a form of arrhythmia.

A year after the catheter ablation, the percentages of patients, old and young, with infrequent or no AF was basically the same.

• 87 percent of patients younger than 45 years old
• 88 percent of patients 45-54 years old and 55-64 years old
• 82 percent of patients 65 years or older.

However, younger patients suffered fewer side-effects. These young patients were less likely to need medication a year after the procedure and have major complications. Older patients had 2%-3% of the older patients had a major complication like stroke during or after catheter ablation.

About 2.2 million people in the United States have AF, but it is more common among the elderly. Around 6% of elderly (people older than 65 years old) are afflicted with AF, so not much research has been done about catheter ablation on younger people until now.