A wearable cardioverter defibrillator for prevention of sudden cardiac death in a hematologic patient—a case report

Abstract

The wearable cardioverter defibrillator (WCD) is a suitable option to overcome life-threatening episodes of malignant arrhythmia. There is much experience in the use of these devices in patients with idiopathic arrhythmia as well as in patients at a high risk for sudden cardiac death. However, there is lack of experience with WCD usage in hematologic patients with a limited expected lifespan. Here, we report a rare case of malignant arrhythmia in a patient with cardiac relapse of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and the option of WCD use. WCD provides the possibility of bridging to implantation of a cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) in cases with a high risk of hemorrhage as well as being a definite therapy in patients with limited life expectance.