Monitoring of Hemodynamics in Heart Failure Patients by Intracardiac Impedance Measurement

Monitoring of Hemodynamics in Heart Failure Patients by Intracardiac Impedance Measurement

Heart Failure (HF) is one of the most frequent diagnoses upon hospitalization and is a major cause of death. Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) using an implantable device for synchronous bi-ventricular stimulation leads to improvement of hemodynamic parameters, physical capacity and quality of life. A continuous measurement of the left-ventricular volume would provide information about heart performance and could be used for both heart failure monitoring and optimization of CRT-therapy.

Inclusion Criteria:

• De novo CRT-patients
• Planned implantation with a Lumax 740 HF-T device, a bipolar LV-lead and a true bipolar RV-lead
• NYHA class II or III
• QRS ≥ 150 ms
• LVEF between 15% and 35%
• LVEDD ≥ 55 mm
• Evaluable echo measurements

Exclusion Criteria:

• Persistent or permanent atrial fibrillation
• Heart surgery within the previous 3 months or planned for the time of study participation; post-heart transplantation or listed for heart transplantation
• Non-ambulatory patients
• Chronic renal dialysis
• Life expectancy less than 1 year due to a non-cardiac disease
• Age < 18 years and/or limited contractual capability
• Addiction to alcohol, medical drugs or illegal drugs
• Pregnant or breast-feeding women
• Participation in another clinical trial