Consequently, there is no risk for malfunction in the year 2000. Esophageal pacing is administered via the left atrium while transthoracic pacing is generally accomplished via stimulation of the ventricles.
Atrial pacing is contra-indicated in patients with complete AV heart block.
TAP is administered via the left atrium while endocardial pacing is accomplished via stimulation of the right atrium. For evaluating sinus and AV node function, McEneaney et al and Cebron et al found no significant differences between electrophysiological parameters estimated by endocardial vs. transesophageal measurements. Samson et al and Favele et al compared TAP and intracardiac atrial pacing and found the methods to be equally effective in the diagnosis of supraventricular tachycardias. For evaluating atrial pre-excitation, Pehrson et al found TAP and invasive endocardial pacing to be equally effective at inducing atrial fibrillation and flutter in patients with a history of tachyarrhythmias. As compared to endocardial or transvenous catheters, insertion of an esophageal lead is clearly less invasive and faster to implement, and requires less technical expertise and no patient sedation.