MASSDEVICE ON CALL — A new imaging tool could help cardiologists better determine which patients are at the highest risk of sudden cardiac arrest and would most likely benefit from receiving an implanted cardioverter defibrillator, according to researchers at the University of Buffalo.
The researchers reported the findings of the UB Parapet study, touted as the largest PET study imaging study ever done on cardiac arrest, at this year’s Heart Rhythm Society meeting.
The study found a connection between the amount of dead or damaged nerves in the heart and the risk for sudden cardiac arrest, according to a press release.
"Ultimately, we wanted to develop an approach that could tackle the problem of identifying a larger portion of the patients with coronary artery disease who are at risk of developing sudden cardiac arrest," principal investigator Dr. John Canty Jr. said in prepared remarks. "Since many patients who suffer a cardiac arrest do not have severely depressed heart function, PET imaging may be able to identify high risk individuals who, in the future, could be considered candidates for an ICD."
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