Permanent Transvenous Cardiac Pacing

Transvenous cardiac pacing is a commonly employed treatment for symptomatic bradyarrhythmias in dogs. Medical management of these conditions has not proven to be successful leaving pacing as the only viable alternative. The technique of pacemaker implantation is not difficult, but successful pacemaker therapy requires an understanding of electrophysiology, cardiac fluoroscopic anatomy, pacemaker instrumentation, and programming. Proper patient selection and identification of the underlying rhythm disturbance is essential to a successful clinical outcome. This article discusses the indications, equipment, techniques, complications, and outcome of permanent transvenous cardiac pacing.