janulla/iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Researchers say a new type of pacemaker without wires and that doesn’t require surgery to install could be the future of the device.
According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the new device is about one-tenth the size of a conventional pacemaker and was effective in about 90 percent of the 300 patients who were studied. Researchers followed the participants for six months after they received the new pacemaker, and found that just 6.7 percent of patients had severe adverse events.
The study notes that the rate of side effects was about double that of the 3.2 percent of patients with serious adverse events when using a conventional pacemaker, but say that the non-surgical nature of the device and its lack of wires could make it a feasible option in the future.
Still, the study’s authors acknowledge, more time may be needed to accurately assess the safety and efficacy of the new pacemaker device.
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