Clinical characteristics and outcome of patients with high defibrillation thresholds. A multicenter study.

Abstract

Antiarrhythmic drug use may be causally related to the finding of an elevated defibrillation threshold. When patients with high defibrillation thresholds receive an ICD, arrhythmic death remains an important risk (42% of deaths in these patients were arrhythmia related, with 16% actuarial incidence at 5 years). Vigorous testing to optimize patch location can potentially benefit patients by enhancing the margin of safety for effective defibrillation.