Brit becomes first heart patient to take part in defibrillator implant trial

08 June 2023 , 23:01

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Phil O’Donoghue is first patient in the trial (Image: PA)

A world-first trial aiming to cut deaths from sudden cardiac arrests has begun in the UK.

Phil O’Donoghue is the first of 2,500 heart patients to undergo surgery for the experiment.

It will look at which defibrillators fitted in their chest can provide a life-saving shock to reset the heart.

The trial at University Hospital Southampton will look at whether scar tissue, detected by scans, may cause dangerous heart rhythms.

It can also predict which patients will need an implantable cardioverter defibrillator.

Baby boy has spent his life in hospital as doctors are 'scared' to discharge him

Mr O’Donoghue, 53, from Chandler’s Ford, Hants, suffers from non-ischemic cardiomyopathy and had heart scares in January and March. The patient is on medication for his condition and cannot exert himself physically.

The medical trial will involve 2,500 heart patients

Mr O’Donoghue, who had his ICD fitted this week, said: “If the trial can move treatments forward then it’s obviously a benefit.”

Cardiac failure affects more than 900,000 people in the UK. The Mirror is campaigning for a law requiring defibrillators to be placed at sports grounds and public buildings.

The three-year BRITISH Trial, funded by £1.8million from the British Heart Foundation, will randomly pick half of the people to get an ICD.

The other participants will be fitted with an implantable loop recorder, which monitors cardiac activity but does not shock the heart.

The trial is run by the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit at Southampton University.

Martin Bagot