Northeast Georgia Heart Center is one of 200 nationwide centers participating in the ST Monitoring to Detect ACS (Acute Coronary Syndrome) Events in ICD Patients study, known as the Analyze ST trial. The trial will study the safety and effectiveness of a new feature in the device maker's Fortify ST implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) system.
On August 15, the first patient in the state of Georgia was implanted with the Fortify ST cardioverter defibrillator device by Joon Ahn, MD at Northeast Georgia Medical Center.
"We are very exciting to participate in a cutting edge trial of this magnitude. We believe this is an extraordinary opportunity to make a vitally important contribution to medical science that may ultimately lead to saving patients' lives," said Joon Ahn, MD, co-principle investigator, electrophysiologist with Northeast Georgia Heart Center.
More than half of patients experiencing a heart attack die before reaching a hospital. Even patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) are at high risk of having a life-threatening or potentially fatal coronary event. Additionally, 15 to 20 percent of patients who have had an ischemic event have recurrent events. As a result, CAD needs to be managed on an ongoing basis to avoid a more unstable or life threatening acute coronary event. Furthermore, approximately two thirds of ICD patients have cardiac ischemia (narrowing or blockage responsible for significantly obstructing the flow of blood to a patient's heart muscle), with many more having risk factors for developing cardiovascular disease.
The ST monitoring feature in the Fortify ST ICD is designed to detect a coronary event, such as a heart attack, by monitoring changes in a specific section of the patient's heartbeat
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