[By NBC-1TV E. H Kim]BIOTRONIK, a leading manufacturer of innovative medical technology, announced today that the first patient in the United States has been implanted with the company's Lumax 740 dual-chamber implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD).

“Patients on anti-arrhythmic medication may have slower ventricular tachycardias, which can influence a patient‘s hemodynamics and directly affect a device’s ability to discriminate arrhythmias and successfully restore a normal rhythm,” said Larry A. Chinitz, M.D, Director, Cardiac Electrophysiology, Invasive Cardiology at the NYU Heart Rhythm Center, NYU School of Medicine. “In addition, the presence of atrial arrhythmias can confuse the device if it isn't able to tell the difference between a lethal arrhythmia and a non-lethal arrhythmia.”

Lumax 740 has a unique feature, called SMART® detection, which aids in rhythm discrimination and reduces unnecessary therapies. It continues to discriminate between atrial and ventricular arrhythmias, with a high level of specificity, even when an arrhythmia is redetected. Reducing unnecessary therapies also reduces the risk for long-term medical consequences that may result from inappropriate shocks. Atrial arrhythmias are the main culprit for patients receiving inappropriate shocks.

“The Lumax 740 series is based on a revolutionary technology,” commented Rex Richmond, Vice President Marketing BIOTRONIK, Inc. “It incorporates state-of-the-art circuitry in a remarkably efficient design, offering industry-leading longevity nearly to a decade of service.”

“Our focus on quality is core to our design principles,” continued Richmond, “and we know that high quality and durable systems are better for patients and less costly for the healthcare system over time. For five decades, BIOTRONIK has been completely focused on manufacturing the most reliable devices and leads. We, and our customers, are proud of the bar we've set for the industry in that respect.”