An implantable medical device (IMD) is configured with a pressure sensor. The IMD includes a housing, a pressure sensor and a fluid filled cavity. The housing has a diaphragm that is exposed to the environment outside of the housing. The pressure sensor has a pressure sensor diaphragm that is responsive to a pressure applied to the pressure sensor diaphragm and provides a pressure sensor output signal that is representative of the pressure applied to the pressure sensor diaphragm. The fluid filled cavity is in fluid communication with both the diaphragm of the housing and the pressure sensor diaphragm of the pressure sensor. The fluid filled cavity is configured to communicate a measure related to the pressure applied by the environment to the diaphragm of the housing to the pressure sensor diaphragm of the pressure sensor.

Systems, methods and devices to facilitate insertion of a lead for cardiac therapy into an intercostal space associated with the cardiac notch of a patient are described including devices, methods and medical procedure templates to facilitate insertion proximate to a lateral margin of the patient's sternum.

Embodiments herein include implantable medical systems, devices and methods including chemical sensors. In an embodiment, an implantable medical device system includes a chemical sensor; a fluid state sensor such as a posture sensor; an activity sensor; and/or a respiration sensor. The implantable medical device system can further include normalization circuitry receiving data from the chemical sensor and the fluid state sensor and normalizing the chemical sensor data based on data from the fluid state sensor. In an embodiment, a method of operating an implantable medical device system is included. The method can include measuring the amount of a chemical analyte using a chemical sensor, measuring the fluid status in a patient using a fluid state sensor, and normalizing the measured amount of the chemical analyte as indicated by the chemical sensor using normalization circuitry based on data from the fluid state sensor. Other embodiments are also included herein.

Methods and apparatuses for use in medical procedures are disclosed. Some implementations may include a medical procedure guide that can overlay portions of anatomy of a patient. The guide may include alignment markings to facilitate proper placement, procedure markings to facilitate determination of a position at which to commence a medical procedure, and/or imaging markers incorporated within the guide to facilitate commencement or completion of the medical procedure in conjunction with imaging.

A cardiac pacing system having a pulse generator for generating therapeutic electric pulses, a lead electrically coupled with the pulse generator having an electrode, a first sensor configured to monitor a physiological characteristic of a patient, a second sensor configured to monitor a second physiological characteristic of a patient and a controller. The controller can determine a pacing vector based on variables including a signal received from the second sensor, and cause the pulse generator to deliver the therapeutic electrical pulses according to the determined pacing vector. The controller can also modify pacing characteristics based on variables including a signal received from the second sensor.

Embodiments of the disclosure are related to systems and methods for utilizing biomarker panel data with respect to medical devices and methods, amongst other things. In an embodiment, the disclosure can include a method of predicting the likelihood of response to CRT therapy. The method can include quantifying levels of one or more biomarkers in a biological sample of a patient, analyzing the quantified levels to determine response to CRT therapy, wherein a panel of biomarkers includes at least two selected from the group consisting of CRP, SGP-130, sIL-2R, sTNFR-II, IFNg, BNP, sST2, MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1, TIMP-2, TIMP-4. Other embodiments are also included herein.

Systems and methods for ambulatory detection of medical events such as cardiac arrhythmia are described herein. An embodiment of an arrhythmia detection system may include a detection criterion circuit that determines a patient-specific detection criterion using a baseline cardiac characteristic when the patient is free of cardiac arrhythmias. The detection criterion circuit generates a patient-specific threshold of a signal metric by adjusting a population-based threshold of the signal metric, where the manner and the amount of adjustment is based on information about patient baseline cardiac characteristic. The arrhythmia detection system detects an arrhythmia episode using a physiologic signal sensed from the patient and the patient-specific arrhythmia detection threshold.

Systems, methods and devices for delivering stimulating energy with a lead having a directional electrode are disclosed. The lead includes a directional electrode having an electrically active portion configured to emanate stimulating energy from an exposed portion of the directional electrode. The lead also has an electrically insulating portion around at least part of the circumference of the lead. The electrically insulating portion is configured to insulate surrounding muscle and/or tissue from the stimulating energy when the lead is implanted in the patient.

An implantable cardiac rhythm management medical device is configured to switch from a first operating mode to a second, ventricular assist device operating mode for detecting cardiac arrhythmias and controlling delivery of anti-arrhythmia therapy during the ventricular assist device operating mode. The implantable medical device may receive a command from another medical device indicating co-implantation of a ventricular assist device with the implantable medical device in a patient and switch from the first mode of operating to the second mode of operating in response to receiving the command. Switching from the first mode to the second mode may include adjusting at least one control parameter used for controlling an electrical stimulation therapy deliverable by the implantable cardiac rhythm management medical device.

A cardiac pacing system having a pulse generator for generating therapeutic electric pulses, a lead electrically coupled with the pulse generator having an electrode, a first sensor configured to monitor a physiological characteristic of a patient, a second sensor configured to monitor a second physiological characteristic of a patient and a controller. The controller can determine a pacing vector based on variables including a signal received from the second sensor, and cause the pulse generator to deliver the therapeutic electrical pulses according to the determined pacing vector. The controller can also modify pacing characteristics based on variables including a signal received from the second sensor.