Epicardial pacing wires

Last revised by Ian Bickle on 22 Feb 2024

Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data

Citation:

Jones J, Bickle I, Ashraf A, et al. Epicardial pacing wires. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 19 Apr 2024) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-13552

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-13552

Permalink:

https://radiopaedia.org/articles/13552

rID:

13552

Article created:

22 Apr 2011, Jeremy Jones ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was created Jeremy Jones had no recorded disclosures.

View Jeremy Jones's current disclosures

Last revised:

22 Feb 2024, Ian Bickle ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was last revised Ian Bickle had the following disclosures:

4ways diagostics, I work for this out sourcing company during non NHS hours (ongoing)

These were assessed during peer review and were determined to not be relevant to the changes that were made.

View Ian Bickle's current disclosures

Revisions:

7 times, by 4 contributors - see full revision history and disclosures

Systems:

Cardiac

Synonyms:

Epicardial pacing wire
Temporary epicardial pacing wire
Temporary pacing wires

Epicardial pacing wires or temporary pacing wires (TPW) allow rapid commencement of atrial and/or ventricular pacing in the event of a perioperative cardiac arrhythmia that has the potential to cause significant hemodynamic compromise.

They are usually inserted during open heart surgery, and especially in those with congenital heart disease ¹. Some surgeons will place epicardial pacing wires during CABG but this is not routine practice ^2-3.

Removal is usually on the fourth postoperative day via gentle transcutaneous retraction. A coagulation screen should be checked prior to removal and the patient monitored post-procedure to allow early identification of rare, but serious complications such as a myocardial or pericardial injury and further arrhythmia.