Twiddler syndrome with a twist: a cause of vagal nerve stimulator lead fracture

Abstract

Twiddler syndrome is uncommon in children and most commonly described as causing lead retraction with implanted cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators. We report an uncommon case of a child repeatedly "twiddling" a vagal nerve stimulator to the point of lead fracture. The findings of Twiddler syndrome illustrated here apply to all implanted devices and show the complication of lead fracture in addition to the more commonly reported complication of lead retraction. This case highlights the need to be aware of the radiographic findings of this phenomenon in children with implanted vagal nerve stimulators due to the perceived increased risk of "twiddling" in pediatric and developmentally delayed patients.

View details for DOI 10.1007/s00247-013-2736-8

View details for Web of Science ID 000327425400014

View details for PubMedID 23832019