Patent ID: 7076298

Claim:
An implantable medical device, comprising: a microprocessor characterizing cardiac activity of a patient, the implantable medical device delivering therapy in response to an identified arrhythmia event; and a monitor/controller monitoring the characterized cardiac activity and the delivered therapy, determining inter-detection intervals between two or more terminated identified arrhythmia events and controlling subsequent activation of triggered overdrive pacing in response to the determined inter-detection intervals, wherein the monitor/controller determines whether an arrhythmia event has terminated in response to the delivered therapy, determines whether to terminate triggered overdrive pacing in response to triggered overdrive pacing being active, determines whether the arrhythmia event is associated with an arrhythmia cluster in resoonse to the determined inter-detection intervals and triggered overdrive pacing not being active, and activates triggered overdrive pacing in response to the arrhythmia event being associated with an arrhythmia cluster and triggered overdrive pacing being appropriate, and wherein the monitor/controller determines that the arrhythmia event is associated with an arrhythmia cluster in response to an inter-detection interval associated with the arrhythmia event being less than a predetermined time period, a predetermined number of arrhymia events being detected and inter-detection intervals associated with the redetermined number of arrhythmia events corresponding to an arrhythmia cluster.