The historical device display at HRS received a wonderful reception, and I am grateful to everyone who stopped by to look, ask questions, and share memories.
Together with Dr. James Ong, Dr. Jason Jacobs, and Dr. Aileen Ferrick, I had the privilege of curating a display centered on the evolution of power sources used for cardiac pacing. The exhibit traced the story from Albert Hyman’s crank-driven pacemaker, Paul Zoll’s mains-powered externals, Earl Bakken’s battery-powered wearable pacemaker, through the NiCd-powered implantable pacemakers of the late 1950s and 1960s, to the first lithium-powered pacemakers of the mid-1970s. We also included the always crowd-pleasing nuclear-powered pacemakers, along with the lesser-known but fascinating RF-powered pacemakers and Pacesetter rechargeable devices.
The response from attendees was deeply gratifying. These devices are more than technological artifacts; they represent decades of clinical need, engineering creativity, patient courage, and relentless innovation in cardiac rhythm management.
I would like to thank Germaine Schaefer, HRS Vice President of Meetings and Events, for organizing such a magnificent conference, and to thank my colleagues for the hard work we put into cleaning up the vast HRS collection and curating this display.
It was a pleasure to help bring this important history to life at HRS.