Patent ID: 7212859
Filing Date: 2007-05-01
Classification: A61N

Abstract:
1. An implantable cardiac stimulation system for selectively delivering arrhythmia termination pulses to at least one of a ventricle and an atrium of a patient's heart, the system comprising: an implantable cardiac stimulation device encapsulated in a conductive enclosure; a ventricular pulse generator and an atrial pulse generator disposed within the conductive enclosure, the ventricular pulse generator providing ventricular arrhythmia termination pulses and the atrial pulse generator providing atrial arrhythmia termination pulses; a first electrode configuration, including the conductive enclosure, arranged to be coupled to the ventricular pulse generator, to apply the ventricular arrhythmia termination pulses to the heart; wherein the first electrode configuration is one of a plurality of arrhythmia termination electrode configurations; a second electrode configuration, electrically independent from the conductive enclosure, arranged to be coupled to the atrial pulse generator, to apply the atrial arrhythmia termination pulses to the heart; wherein the second electrode is one of a plurality of arrhythmia termination electrode configurations; an electrode configuration selector to select one of the plurality of electrode configurations based upon an arrhythmia terminating characteristic; and wherein the arrhythmia terminating characteristic is based on minimizing atrial arrhythmia termination discomfort of the patient by confining each atrial arrhythmia termination electrode configuration of the plurality of arrhythmia termination electrode configurations to within the heart.