Dual chamber heart pacemaker has mode switching function for switching between synchronous and asynchronous operation in dependence on detected heart rate criteria

摘要

The heart pacemaker has a sensor (107) for detecting electrical activity in the auricle for providing a stimulation pulse for the ventricle, with activation of the sensor at a given point after the stimulation pulse. The stimulation control (100A) for the timing of the stimulation pulses is switched between synchronous and asynchronous operating modes, by comparing the mean value of the actual heart rate with a stored reference value and by counting the number of heart cycles for which the actual heart rate is above the reference heart rate, within a given number of heart cycles.