A path has opened to effectively treat bradyarrhythmia — a condition carrying high risk of sudden death — for a patient's lifetime with a single procedure. Medtronic's leadless pacemaker "Micra 2," featuring a battery life of up to 16 to 17 years, has been launched in South Korea.
Song Ji-eun, director at Medtronic Korea and head of Cath Lab marketing, said at a press conference held at The Plaza Hotel Seoul in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday, "Micra 2 maintains the existing ultra-compact design while offering significantly improved battery life, atrial-ventricular synchronization performance, and delivery system." She added, "It will improve the treatment experience for both clinicians and patients."
Artificial pacemakers are the fundamental treatment for bradyarrhythmia, a condition in which the heart rate drops below 60 beats per minute. If left untreated, bradyarrhythmia prevents the heart from pumping sufficient blood throughout the body. This can cause dizziness, fainting, and shortness of breath, and may lead to serious complications such as heart failure or sudden death. Artificial pacemakers detect the heart's electrical signals in real time and automatically deliver mild electrical stimulation when the heartbeat slows excessively, maintaining a normal rhythm.
In the past, the standard procedure was transvenous pacemaker implantation. Surgeons would make an incision in the patient's thorax near the clavicle, insert electrode leads, and create a pacemaker pocket in the clavicular area to connect with the leads. This method carried risks of complications such as infection from the electrode leads or the pacemaker pocket.
Medtronic's leadless pacemaker "Micra" is approximately one-tenth the size of conventional pacemakers and can independently regulate heartbeats without electrode lead connections. The roughly 2.6-centimeter device integrates electrode leads, circuits, sensors, and a battery all in one unit. It is inserted directly into the heart — onto the right ventricular wall — via catheter through the femoral vein. Patient satisfaction is very high because the device eliminates the risk of complications such as infection, requires shorter procedure times, leaves no chest incision or scarring, and imposes virtually no restrictions on daily life after the procedure.
Micra 2, launched in Korea this month, is the third leadless pacemaker model following "Micra VR" in 2021 and "Micra AV" in 2023. Through optimized power consumption and improved battery composition, the device's lifespan has been extended by approximately 40 percent compared to previous models. Based on analysis of real patient data, the company projects Micra 2's expected lifespan to reach approximately 16 to 17 years. For more than 80 percent of eligible patients, a single pacemaker is expected to maintain therapeutic effectiveness for life without the need for a repeat procedure.
The medical community expects patient access to improve significantly, as mandatory insurance coverage for leadless pacemakers was applied late last year for patients at high risk of infection, those undergoing hemodialysis, and those with difficult venous access. Yoo Hee-tae, a professor of cardiology at Severance Cardiovascular Hospital, who spoke at the press conference, said, "Advances in leadless pacemaker technology, including extended battery life and algorithm sophistication, improve consistency in treatment outcomes and provide a foundation for establishing long-term treatment strategies." He added, "More precise patient-centered treatment will become possible."