Complications of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator treatment in arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy

Aims: Treatment with implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICD) is a cornerstone for prevention of sudden cardiac death in arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC). We aimed at describing the complications associated with ICD treatment in a multinational cohort with long-term follow-up.

Methods and results: The Nordic ARVC registry was established in 2010 and encompasses a large multinational cohort of ARVC patients, including their clinical characteristics, treatment, and events during follow-up. We included 299 patients (66% males, median age 41 years). During a median follow-up of 10.6 years, 124 (41%) patients experienced appropriate ICD shock therapy, 28 (9%) experienced inappropriate shocks, 82 (27%) had a complication requiring surgery (mainly lead-related, n = 75), and 99 (33%) patients experienced the combined endpoint of either an inappropriate shock or a surgical complication. The crude rate of first inappropriate shock was 3.4% during the first year after implantation but decreased after the first year and plateaued over time. Contrary, the risk of a complication requiring surgery was 5.5% the first year and remained high throughout the study period. The combined risk of any complication was 7.9% the first year. In multivariate cox regression, presence of atrial fibrillation/flutter was a risk factor for inappropriate shock (P < 0.05), whereas sex, age at implant, and device type were not (all P > 0.05).

Conclusion: Forty-one percent of ARVC patients treated with ICD experienced potentially life-saving ICD therapy during long-term follow-up. A third of the patients experienced a complication during follow-up with lead-related complications constituting the vast majority.