Biomedicalization of Cardiac Risk

Abstract

Every body within a population is at risk to a certain extent at all times, however the elderly are the most at risk of death and physical ailments. In particular, older individuals are more likely to have a stroke, which means their risk of having a stroke is higher also. Cardiac risk treatment entails the same invasive procedures as emergency treatment, which relies on "ironic technology" to intervene with biological processes to prolong life (Kaufman 2010). By preventing the risk of sudden death, devices such as the implantable cardioverter defribrillator (ICD) prolong the total process of dying (Kaufman 2010). While cardiac problems have been treated medically for decades, the notion of cardiac risk has become biomedicalized as a technologically treatable phenomenon. For the 85+ population, biomedicalization of cardiac risk involves negotiating the value of a longer life at the expense of a particular identity. When patients elect to implant an ICD, the biomedical device becomes a form of self surveillance; but goes further than structuring healthy behavior by physically regulating a biological process. An international biomedical corporation, Biotronik, has developed an ICD that is remotely monitored. This innovation is celebrated because of the ways in which cardiac risk has been biomedicalized, and is worth examining because of its implications for the 6.6 million people that will be over the age of 85 in 2020. This paper intends to dissect the biomedical industry of risk and posit a new understanding of health technologies.