Cardiac Pacing Techniques in Canine Atrioventricular Block
Summary
Canine atrioventricular (AV) block, particularly high-grade and third-degree variants, poses a significant risk of syncope and sudden death in affected dogs. Permanent cardiac pacing has become the standard of care for dogs with symptomatic AV block, restoring reliable ventricular stimulation and improving quality of life. Two principal approaches are employed: transvenous endocardial pacing, in which leads are introduced via central veins into the right heart chambers, and epicardial pacing, involving leads affixed directly to the myocardium via a thoracic approach. Within these approaches, both active fixation leads—screwing directly into myocardial tissue—and passive fixation leads—anchored by tines—are widely used. Recent advances encompass refinements in lead design, minimisation of procedural invasiveness, optimisation of anaesthetic protocols and enhanced perioperative monitoring, all of which have contributed to reduced complication rates and extended device longevity.
Research from Nature Portfolio
No recent Nature Portfolio content available.
Cardiac Pacing Techniques in Canine Atrioventricular Block publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in cardiac pacing techniques in canine atrioventricular block across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Atrioventricular block: Impairment of electrical conduction between the atria and ventricles, graded by severity.
Transvenous endocardial pacing: Placement of pacing leads through venous access into endocardial surfaces of the heart.
Epicardial pacing: Fixation of pacing leads onto the outer surface of the heart via surgical thoracotomy or transdiaphragmatic approach.
Active fixation lead: A pacing lead with a helix or screw mechanism that engages directly into myocardial tissue.
Passive fixation lead: A pacing lead that relies on soft tines or fins to lodge within trabeculae for stability.
Temporary pacing: Short-term external or transvenous pacing used to stabilise heart rate pending permanent device implantation.
References
- A retrospective review of 146 active and passive fixation bradycardia lead implantations in 74 dogs undergoing pacemaker implantation in a research setting of short term duration. BMC Veterinary Research (2018).
- Single center retrospective clinical audit and comparison of outcome between epicardial and transvenous endocardial permanent pacemaker implantations in dogs. PLOS ONE (2023).
- Anaesthetic and perioperative management of a dog with biventricular congestive heart failure and advanced second‐degree atrioventricular block. Veterinary Record Case Reports (2021).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
Turn complex research questions into confident strategic decisions
When you're under pressure to set direction, justify investment, or understand your competitive position, you need more than raw data — you need trusted insights you can act on.
Benchmark your performance against global peers using robust, methodologically sound analysis.
Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative expert insight to uncover strengths, gaps and emerging opportunities.
Gain tailored, decision-ready recommendations aligned to your strategic priorities.
Talk to us to learn more about our data dashboards and bespoke strategy reports.
Grow research skills, confidence and careers with training built for every stage of the research lifecycle.
Developed with Nature Portfolio journal Editors and internationally renowned experts. Discover three ways to learn:
Self-paced, online courses in convenient bite-sized units, covering key skills across scientific writing, publishing, grant writing, data analysis, and more.
Expert trainer-led workshops with hands-on exercises and real-time feedback across core research skills, delivered via interactive group sessions.
Editor-led workshops combining core principles in writing and publishing, personalised 1:1 feedback from Nature Portfolio Editors and hands-on exercises.
Explore course catalogues and workshop agendas, enquire about the options or request institutional pricing.