Patent ID: 8594792

Claim:
A method of optimizing implant parameters for an implantable cardiac rhythm management system including an implantable pulse generator and a coronary venous lead, the coronary venous lead including: an elongate, flexible lead body made of an electrically insulative material, the body having a proximal end and a distal end, the body being sized to permit the distal end to be advanced through a right atrium and a coronary sinus and into a first coronary vein adjacent to a left ventricle of a patient's heart; a first opening in the body at a point intermediate the proximal and distal ends; a lumen extending longitudinally within the lead body and in communication with the first opening; and at least one pace/sense electrode coupled to the body proximate the distal end, the method comprising: positioning the electrode within the first coronary vein adjacent the left ventricle; operatively coupling the electrode to the implantable pulse generator or a pacing system analyzer device; deploying a pressure transducer through the lumen and out the first opening in the lead so as to position the pressure transducer in the first coronary vein or a second coronary vein; generating an acute baseline pressure waveform based on an output signal from the pressure transducer over a plurality of cardiac cycles; applying an electrical stimulus to the left ventricle through the electrode using the implantable pulse generator or the pacing system analyzer; and adjusting one or more CRM system parameters while monitoring changes in the pressure waveform relative to the baseline.