MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to a study to be published in the Nov. 18 issue of the journal Circulation, Medtronic’s Lead Integrity Alert™ (LIA) significantly improves early identification of potential implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) lead fractures. LIA offers added protection for ICD patients through more frequent audible alarms and is the first continuous ICD monitoring technology that triggers real-time device changes to reduce unnecessary shocks that could result from potential lead fractures. Study results showed LIA provided at least a three-day advanced warning of unnecessary shocks in 76 percent of patients. In the analysis of about 16,000 patients, when the LIA alert was triggered, 72 percent of alerts were lead fractures and 81 percent of alerts were lead fractures or header connector problems requiring surgical intervention. The false-positive rate was one per 372 patient-years of monitoring.
