Following the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of Abbott’s next-generation Gallant implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) in July 2020, the first Gallant ICD was implanted at St. Elizabeth Edgewood in October, making it the first implantable cardiac device to communicate via Bluetooth with a smartphone app for the patient. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Gallant ICD will be able to facilitate better engagement between healthcare providers and patients, and therefore earlier intervention and reduction of unnecessary hospitalizations, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Sheryl Tang, Principal Medical Devices Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “There is a continuous push for seamless, contact-less patient care by utilizing technology in different ways amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Technology is being used now more than ever for continuing patient care virtually without compromising post-treatment patient outcomes and keeping patients safe during the pandemic.”

GlobalData estimated that in 2019, there were over 300,000 ICD and pacemaker implants in the US, however, this is expected to decrease by 20% in 2020 due to COVID-19. Furthermore, physicians have generally noted that patients have been reluctant to seek treatment at the hospital, resulting in patients coming in with severe conditions.

Tang adds: “The smartphone connectivity capability with the Gallant ICD is expected to significantly improve remote patient monitoring rates and patient engagement, where increased compliance and communication translates to reduced hospitalizations and better clinical outcomes.”