Cardiac pacing and devices: history, technologies and current innovations

This article summarises the history of cardiac pacing, from major early scientific developments to implantable pacing systems. Advances in batteries, leads, electromagnetics and programming in pacing are traced, and there is an up-to-date appraisal of innovations. There is a review of cardiac devices developed from pacing technology, including biventricular pacemakers for heart failure, implantable cardioverter defibrillators to prevent sudden cardiac death, leadless pacemakers and implantable loop recorders. The aim of the article is to give an overview of cardiac devices, one of the major technological advances over the past 85 years.