Paired electrical stimulation of the heart was applied in the treatment of 82 patients with
tachycardia of various origin, refractory to
drug treatment. Cardiostimulators and
electrodes of the Institute's own original design were used. The stimulation parameters were calculated by a method proposed by the author. The best results were achieved in patients with
paroxysmal tachycardia; in 14 out of 17 patients, paired stimulation suppressed the attack. In a majority of patients with tachysystolic form of
atrial fibrillation (30 out of 49 patients), stimulation led to normalization of haemodynamics and helped overcome the crisis. In
sinus tachycardia the retardative pacing was beneficial in rare cases only, when the
tachycardia was losing its compensatory character. Of dangerous complications there occurred
ventricular fibrillation (2 patients), removed by electroshock. In the author's opinion, paired stimulation has its advantages over
electric defibrillation in patients in a poor condition with
paroxysmal tachycardia and the tachysystolic form of
atrial fibrillation.