First Dual-Chamber Leadless Pacemaker implant this week
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health, Ian Borg congratulated the Cardiology Department at Mater Dei Hospital upon successfully implanting the country’s first dual-chamber leadless pacemaker, a groundbreaking advancement in cardiac care for patients in Malta.
The Deputy Prime Minister met with the Maltese multidisciplinary cardiac team behind this development, at Mater Dei Hospital, after the landmark surgery, this week. Dual-chamber leadless pacemakers, almost a tenth of the size of a conventional pacemaker, were developed in recent years, with first clinical trials in 2022. Malta is now joining several other countries that are adopting this revolutionary technology for cardiac patients with certain conditions that may limit the use of traditional pacemakers.
“I wish to thank Mater Dei Hospital and its staff, for working together to keep Malta at the forefront of cardiac care — cardiologists, nurses, cardiac physiologists, radiographers and the wider Cath Lab and Cardiology teams, and many others,” Dr Borg said, adding that, “our priority is to continue supporting all opportunities to deliver the best possible care, adopting the latest tools and technology that our healthcare professionals need. Ultimately, advances in medicine matter most when they can truly improve to the wellbeing and quality of life for our patients.”
Dr Andrew Cassar Maempel, Chairman of the Cardiology Department and Consultant Cardiologist at Mater Dei Hospital, explained that unlike conventional pacemakers, leadless pacemakers are implanted directly inside the heart and do not require a pacemaker pocket beneath the skin or traditional leads passing through the veins. “This can be particularly valuable for selected patients with previous cardiac device infections, an increased risk of infection, or blocked or difficult upper-limb venous access,” he said.
The introduction of dual chamber leadless pacemakers in Malta builds on Mater Dei Hospital’s leadless pacing programme, established in 2023, with the introduction of single-chamber leadless pacing. Dual-chamber technology now allows two miniature devices, positioned in the right atrium and right ventricle, to communicate with each other and provide coordinated pacing of both chambers of the heart.
The achievement reflects the continued development of advanced cardiovascular care at Mater Dei Hospital, including conduction system pacing and subcutaneous defibrillator therapy, alongside the latest advances in electrophysiology and arrhythmia ablation, structural heart interventions and coronary interventions.
Photos: ODPM/MFH
