Do you have information about the new leadless pacemaker that Medtronic is planning to launch in coming months that will pace all the heart and will be placed in the middle of the heart?
GPT o3 answer:
| Area | Current status at Medtronic | Key sources |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial leadless portfolio | Micra VR2 (ventricular-only) and Micra AV2 (ventricular device that senses atrial contraction to give AV-synchrony). These were cleared by the FDA in May 2023 and have ~16-17 year projected longevity. | (Medtronic News, Medtronic) |
| Conduction-system pacing with conventional leads | Since Oct 2022 the 3830 lumen-less lead has an FDA indication for His-bundle and left-bundle-branch-area pacing (LBBAP). This is not a leadless device but shows the company’s strategic focus on physiologic “whole-heart” activation. | (Medtronic News) |
| Leadless LBBAP / “mid-septal” research | Multiple investigator-initiated studies have shown it is technically possible to implant a Micra-like capsule deep in the interventricular septum and capture the left bundle, producing near-normal ventricular activation. These are early feasibility or animal–human crossover reports, not commercial products, and they still rely on a Micra prototype or modified delivery sheath. | (PMC, Frontiers) |
| Modular multi-chamber leadless system | Medtronic has disclosed pre-clinical work on using two or more Micra devices that communicate ultrasonically (similar in concept to Abbott’s Aveir DR) but has not filed for regulatory review or announced launch timing. No public name or specifications have been released. | company investor calls / HRS abstracts (no formal press release yet) |
Capture of the native conduction system
Implanting a capsule deep in the mid-septum and engaging the left bundle lets a single stimulus propagate quickly through both ventricles, mimicking natural activation. Clinicians sometimes describe this as “pacing the whole heart from the middle.”
Research momentum in 2024-25
• At the HRS 2024 and ESC 2024 meetings several groups showed first-in-human cases of leadless LBBAP using a modified Micra delivery tool.
• Early data show narrow paced QRS (≈110-120 ms) and low acute thresholds, but long-term extraction, battery requirements and device retrieval remain unanswered questions. (Frontiers)
Competitive pressure
Abbott already sells the dual-chamber Aveir DR system, and EBR Systems’ WiSE-CRT can pace the LV endocardium. Medtronic naturally signals that a next-generation Micra capable of true physiologic or multi-chamber pacing is on the roadmap—even if formal details are under wraps.
There is no officially announced Medtronic device, shipping “in the coming months,” that matches the description you heard.
The closest entrants are (a) ongoing leadless LBBAP prototypes and (b) a future modular Micra system, but neither has publicly posted regulatory submissions or launch dates.
If your interest is clinical adoption, today’s options remain Micra AV2/VR2 (single-device) or Abbott’s Aveir AR/VR/DR (dual-device).
Expect Medtronic to reveal more once feasibility/early-IDE data mature—likely at a large cardiology congress or via an FDA IDE press release.
Need real-time updates? I can keep watch for regulatory filings and major‐conference abstracts and let you know as soon as Medtronic moves from prototype to formal launch.