How to Evaluate Quality-of-Life in Pacemaker Patients: Problems and Pitfalls.

The article presents a short history of the evaluation of quality-of-life in pacemaker patients. Quality-of-life of an individual is defined as the overall satisfaction with life and general sense of well-being. Most quality-of-life definitions include four broad domains: physical function; emotional state; social interaction; and somatic sensation. Quality-of-life is a relatively new scientific measure to evaluate effectiveness of treatment. It reflects the patients perceived health and may considerably improve the evaluation of an optimal pacing mode. Therefore, quality-of-life evaluations should be included in the assessment of different pacing modes.