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The world's smallest pacemaker has been fitted inside the heart of a UK patient, medics have said.

The Micra Transcatheter Pacing System was fitted for the first time in England at Southampton General Hospital .

Consultant cardiologist Prof John Morgan said the procedure was a "landmark moment".

He said the device was "not much larger than an antibiotic pill" and was one tenth the size of traditional models 美容專科.

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A brief history of the pacemaker

Electrical activity within the heart was discovered in the 1800s
The first artificial pacemaker, built by Albert Hyman in 1932, was powered by a hand-cranked motor
Post World War 2 smaller devices were pioneered, with some worn like a necklace
In 1958 the first implanted pacemaker was given to Arne Larsson in Sweden, but the device failed after three hours
Early pacemaker batteries had short lifetimes until Wilson Greatbatch pioneered long-life lithium batteries in the 1970s
Source: The Science Museum, London

Currently, pacemakers, which use electrical impulses to regulate the beating of the heart, are inserted under the skin and connected to the heart via a lead.

The lead carries electrical signals to correct slow or irregular heartbeats, but they can require replacement due to broken or dislodged wires.

The new device can be implanted directly in the heart and delivers electrical impulses from an electrode, removing the need for a lead EMERGENCY PRODUCTS.

Prof Morgan said: "In addition to the advantages of the device's size and wireless technology, the procedure reduces the risk of infection and extended recovery time associated with traditional, more invasive surgical pacemaker implants.

"This a big step forward in patient treatment and a milestone for cardiac rhythm management in the UK."