St. Jude Medical launches Accent MRI pacemaker

HYDERABAD, INDIA: St. Jude Medical, Inc., a global medical device company, on Tuesday announced the launch of the Accent MRI pacemaker and a Tendril MRI lead.

The new pacemaker and lead will allow patients to undergo full-body, high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and accommodate the patients' current and future medical needs.

Each year approximately one million pacemakers are implanted worldwide, and it is estimated that up to 75 percent of pacemaker patients could benefit from MRI scans during the lifetime of their devices, said a statement from the company.

The new Accent MRI pacemaker system is an advanced pacing platform that provides wireless telemetry and algorithms to address individual patient conditions, with the added benefit of MRI conditional scanning capability.

The system features an MRI Activator device that provides a simple alternative option for programming the device to the appropriate MRI mode for use during the scan.

"The Accent MRI pacemaker has many advantages over what is currently available in India. It is a state-of-the-art pacemaker that offers full body, high-resolution scanning capability without restrictions, which is especially important to patients who may need an MRI scan in the chest and abdominal area," said Kaustav Banerjee, Country Manager of St. Jude Medical India.

The innovative technology is being offered to Madras Medical Mission and other hospitals, he added.