An implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) is a device that detects a life-threatening, rapid heartbeat. When this happens, the ICD quickly sends an electrical shock to the heart. This shock is intended to correct the rhythm back to normal.
You might need an ICD if you have a dangerously fast heartbeat that keeps your heart from supplying enough blood to the rest of your body (such as ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation) or if you are at high risk of such a heart rhythm problem (arrhythmia), usually because of a weak heart muscle.
The ICD is implanted in a pouch just beneath the skin of the chest, most times right below the collarbone, or along your ribs. In small children and infants, the ICD may be implanted in the abdomen. The ICD is comparable in size to a deck of playing cards or a pocket watch. Wires or leads run from the ICD to positions on the surface of or inside the heart and can be inserted through blood vessels.,
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