temporary pacemaker /tem′pərer′ē/ [L, temporalis, temporary, passus, step; ME, maken] , an electronic pacemaker used as an interim treatment when the heart rate is excessively low. It consists of either a pulse generator and battery attached outside the patient’s body and connected to a transvenous electrode in the right ventricle or conductive pads placed on the chest and connected to an external pulse generator by cables.
