[Surgical complications of pacemaker implantation (author's transl)].

During the period 1966-1977, 705 pacemaker implantations with transvenous endocardial electrode and 369 substitutions of generators were carried out, besides 275 operations treating some complications after implantation were required. The most frequent complications were: endocardial electrode dislocation (9.4%), lesion caused by decubitus (7.5%) and infection of subcutaneous pocket (5%), decubitus lesion and infection of the skin caused by the electrode (1.7%), electrode and generator breaking (1.3%), right ventricle perforation caused by the electrode (0.37%). Surgical mortality-rate was 0.18%.