Very late perforation of an implantable cardioverter defibrillator lead: a case report.

British Journal of General Practice, February 2014 107 IntroduCtIon Every year approximately 40 000 pacemakers and defibrillators are implanted in the UK amounting to one new implanted device per GP.1 Placements of pacemakers or implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) have become routine procedures and are generally associated with low complication rates. One of the most endangering complications is the perforation of electrodes. Usually the perforation of leads occurs shortly after implantation and it is an acute and potentially life-threatening event.2,3 Late lead perforations more than 1 month after initial implantation have been described as exceedingly rare incidents.4,5