A first in Israel: Implantation of an innovative cardioverter defibrillator

Hillel Yaffe Medical Center's Cardiology Division continues to innovate. Marking a first in Israel, an innovative cardioverter defibrillator based on BlueSync technology, was implanted at Hillel Yaffe. It enables remote monitoring through a special app - directly to the patient's cellphone.

The procedure was successfully performed by Pacemaker Service Director Dr. Mark Kazatsker and Dr. Gilad Margolis, a senior physician in the Electrophysiology Unit, in a patient who suffered from life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias.

“The purpose of the cardioverter defibrillator is to track every single beat of the patient's heart, identify life-threatening arrhythmias and treat them immediately, without requiring human intervention,” said Director of the Arrhythmia (Electrophysiology) and Pacemaker Unit at Hille Yaffe, Dr. Eran Leshem.

“Beyond the fact that it offers a longer battery life than the devices known in Israel, the patient is able to monitor their condition in real time through a special app, to be aware of the most minor events and even alert medical professionals about the diagnosed changes. When the device begins operating, the patient is able to show the data to emergency medicine staff via the app, something which in the past could have only been established at the hospital by staff members of the Cardiology Division. This is yet another step in making personalized medicine accessible to patients,” added Dr. Leshem.

Doctors from the Electrophysiology Unit of HYMC’s Cardiology Division (from right to left) - Dr. Mark Kazatsker, Dr. Eran Leshem and Dr. Gilad Margolis