Doctors successfully insert ICD to a cardiac patient

electrical pulses or shocks to help control life-threatening, irregular heartbeats, especially those that could cause sudden cardiac arrest. Sudden cardiac arrest is a condition in which the heart suddenly stops beating. If the heart stops beating, blood stops flowing to the brain and other vital organs.
It usually causes death if it’s not treated within minutes.
Zimbabwean cardiologist, Dr Mark Dixon and his cardiac technician, Sister Tryphine Majongosi, with the assistance of a South African cardiology company — Amayeza Abantu Biomedical, performed the operation on a Bulawayo patient who was suffering from an abnormal heart rhythm at West End Hospital on Monday.
Mr Stuart Hardy, export manager for Amayeza, sub-Saharan distributor for St Jude Medical, described the procedure as “extremely successful”.
Mr Jude said the patient had already been discharged after receiving a full check up of his device. PSMI group managing director, Dr Farai Muchena, said the operation had provided a platform to re-establish cardiac specialties in Zimbabwe.
“The success of the implant and the life saving therapy that the patient continues to receive is testimony to the skills and temperament of medical professionals involved.
“We hope that this is the first of many such successful cardiac therapies for the people of Zimbabwe and that our cardiac skills development programme continues to improve patients with lifesaving therapy in years to come,” said Dr Muchena. He said the initiative was a collaborative initiative between PSMI and Amayeza to bring cardiac specialties, resources and skills back to Zimbabwe.
“It is hoped that this will culminate in the roll-out of appropriate resources to re-establish cardiac specialties in Zimbabwe,” Dr Muchena said.
He said following the success of the operation, the South African company went further to train several interested Zimbabwean medical professionals in implanting pacemakers.
Pacemakers are electronic devices similar to the cardioverter defibrillator also used to control abnormal heart rhythms.
The majority of Zimbabweans seeking heart operations have been traveling to South Africa.