Ventricular capture by anodal pacemaker stimulation

This report describes the case of an 86-year-old male with syncopal paroxysmal 2:1 atrioventricular block and a single chamber VVI pacemaker programmed to bipolar sensing and unipolar pacing. After recurrence of syncope, a complete loss of ventricular capture with regular ventricular sensing was observed on ECG; fluoroscopic examination suggested perforation of the right ventricle by the helix of the implanted screw-in lead. Reprogramming the pacemaker to bipolar pacing/sensing resulted in regular ventricular capture and sensing, suggesting effective anodal stimulation from the ring electrode permitting complete non-invasive palliation.