Play it Safe and Stick with a Doc who is Board Certified

It turns out that if you need an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) you are more likely to get it for the right indications and less likely to have complications, if it is done by someone Board Certified in cardiac electrophysiology. If a cardiologist who is not an electrophysiologist or a thoracic surgeon does it, you complication rate is higher and you may have it done for questionable reasons. It may seem simple but stick with doctors who are board certified in the area that you need. Read the details in the April 22/29 issue of JAMA