Diaphragm Pacing

Diaphragm Pacing, also known as phrenic nerve pacing, is the rhythmic application of electrical impulses to the diaphragm, resulting in respiration for patients who would otherwise be dependent on a mechanical ventilator.

This concept was originally referred to as electrophrenic respiration, although the Food and Drug Administration identifies the device as a “diaphragmatic/phrenic nerve stimulator”. A phrenic nerve pacemaker, with electrodes placed around the phrenic nerve, is a Class III medical device, which requires premarket approval. An newer approach has been developed and approved by the FDA (see “diaphragmatic pacemaker”) at Case Western Reserve University which places the electrode in the diaphragm using minimally invasive surgical technique.

Read more about Diaphragm Pacing:  Indications For Use, Surgery, Availability

Famous quotes containing the word pacing:

    In the centre of his cage
    The pacing animal
    Surveys the jungle cove
    And slicks his slithering wiles
    To turn the venereal awl
    In the livid wound of love.
    Allen Tate (1899–1979)