Bassett Heart Care Institute Now Offering Leadless Pacemaker Technology
November 3, 2026
Patient Shares How Her Leadless Pacemaker Changed Her Life
The Bassett Heart Care Institute continues to embrace the latest technology when caring for patients facing challenges with their cardiovascular health.
On August 27 and September 4, 2026, electrophysiologist Benjamin Rosen, MD, and his Heart Institute colleagues performed Bassett Healthcare Network’s first implantations of two different types of leadless pacemakers – a leadless atrial pacemaker and a dual-chamber leadless pacemaker.
A pacemaker is a device that is implanted to help regulate a patient’s heartbeat. When a traditional pacemaker is implanted, thin wires called leads connect the device, which is placed in a pocket under the skin in front of the shoulder, to the heart’s muscle. The leads carry electrical signals from the device to the heart to stimulate it to maintain a normal rhythm and bring information about how the heart is functioning from the heart back to the device. With a leadless pacemaker, the entire device is self-contained and implanted directly into the heart. This removes the need for the wires and the chest pocket.
“Leadless pacemakers can offer certain advantages to patients with conditions for which they are best suited, including a lower risk of infection or other complications and quicker recovery times,” said Dr. Rosen. “The dual chamber pacemaker is really special in that you can place them in both the bottom and top chambers of the heart and have them communicate directly with one another. This removes a limitation of older leadless pacemakers that could only regulate a single chamber. New technology is simplifying this life-saving device both for the patient and their Cardiology team.”
Until these procedures, Bassett Heart Care Institute had only used leadless ventricular pacemakers. A ventricular pacemaker is implanted into the bottom chamber of the heart. Dr. Rosen, who joined the Bassett Heart Care Institute team as an electrophysiologist in September, brought fresh interest in utilizing this technology with him when he began his practice in the network.
“Here at Bassett Healthcare Network, I have many colleagues I can truly depend on. I feel like I have the full support of our organization to bring new techniques into practice,” said Dr. Rosen.
Meet Mindy Cooper Grenke, Director/Choreographer/Dancer and Proud Bassett Heart Patient
Mindy Cooper Grenke has worked as a director, choreographer, dancer, and performer in the Broadway community for over four decades.
“I have been an active human my whole life. I joined my first ballet company professionally at 18 years old. I was on Broadway as a dancer by 26. Now I’m 65 and I dance every day and I direct and choreograph Broadway and off-Broadway productions. Dreams really do come true,” said Cooper Grenke.
Earlier this year, serious health concerns began to put Cooper Grenke’s active lifestyle in jeopardy.
“I had over a dozen episodes where my heart pretty much stopped. I fainted and was unconscious and that took me for a big loop. I have no history of heart disease in my family,” said Cooper Grenke.
All of those episodes happened while Cooper Grenke was in the Cooperstown area, so her medical team at Bassett Medical Center determined one of the new leadless pacemakers would be best for her.
“I am so grateful that the Cardiology team at Bassett saw what a life-affirming decision it would be to choose this new technological achievement for me, to keep my lifestyle and work habits uninhibited,” she said.
In the months that have followed since implantation, Cooper Grenke has not experienced any episodes. She says, days after her procedure, she was gifted a separate, defunct pacemaker from a representative of Abbott, the manufacturer of her pacemaker, so she could see close up what was now inside her. She carries it with her as a reminder.
“I hung it on a necklace along with two other things in my life that are very important to me. One is a memento from my father who has passed and the other is a tiny little mustard seed for the phrase from the Bible about faith and moving mountains,” said Cooper Grenke. “Those three items together are my talisman, to remind me that I’m the luckiest girl I know. I can also sit at lunch with someone and show them what’s inside my heart. I am so grateful to live in a time with this technology and I’m a big believer in embracing it and spreading the word about good things.”
