Abstract: An implantable medical device includes a plurality of magnetic particles contained by a biodegradable material.

Abstract: An implantable medical device (IMD) performs periodic testing of a patient to determine ischemia threshold information. At selected times while the patient is at rest, the IMD increases the pacing rate over time until it receives feedback either from the patient or from an ischemia sensor. The IMD determines the threshold based upon the pacing rate at the time when the feedback was received. The threshold information can be used to adjust the upper pacing rate that can be used during rate adaptive pacing, to determine the effects of drug therapy, and to provide a general indication of the state of coronary artery disease in the patient. The periodic increase of pacing rate to the ischemic zone also provides a preconditioning of the myocardium to allow the patient greater exercise benefit without angina.

Abstract: An implantable medical device system and method in which the implantable device is adapted to operate in a minimum ventricular pacing mode. The device delivers cardiac pacing pulses in a first pacing mode during a normal mode of operation and upon detecting myocardial ischemia alters the first pacing mode in response to the myocardial ischemia detection.

Abstract: The present invention relates to monitoring septal wall motion of the atrial and/or ventricular chambers of a heart for optimizing cardiac pacing intervals based on signals derived from said wall motion. At least one lead of medical device is equipped with a motion sensor adapted to couple to septal tissue. The device receives and may post-process (e.g., suitably filter, rectify and/or integrate) motion signals to determine acceleration, velocity or displacement. During pacing interval optimization the wall motion is measured for many pacing intervals and the pacing interval setting(s) that produce minimal wall motion are implemented for therapy delivery. In addition, the present invention provides methods for periodically determining whether to cease or resume delivery of a bi-ventricular pacing therapy to a patient that may have experienced beneficial reverse remodeling of the heart.