Medical Monday: Farapulse Ablation

Comment   Email   Print
Related Articles

Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown is one of the first hospitals in Tennessee to participate in the The Farapulse Advent Pivotal Trial. This trial will be performed locally by Dr. Robert "Drew" Pickett and Dr. Dan Kaiser of Ascension Saint Thomas Heart.

Atrial fibrillation is the most common type of cardiac dysrhythmia or heart rhythm disorder. According to the Diagnostic and Interventional Cardiac website, it affects nearly 6 million Americans and makes them five times more likely to have a stroke than individuals with a regular heartbeat."The data shows that ablation is significantly more effective in correcting atrial fibrillation than medication," Dr. Pickett stated. "We know that if someone is diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, and you treat them early on, there is a better success rate. Medication is not a long term fix. You have to take them everyday and the more you take them the more side effects and long term risks you develop. This option is safe, fast, and will improve overall quality of life for patients."

This trial will involve at least 350 patients at more than 30 American medical centers targeting patients from the ages of 18 to 75 who are diagnosed with atrial fibrillation. Patients will be chosen in a 1:1 fashion to either participate in the farapulse ablation trial, standard ablation, using the heat method, or cryoballoon ablation, using the freeze method.The ultimate goal is for patients to reach recovery from atrial fibrillation for twelve months after a single ablation procedure.

In a traditional ablation, the tip of a catheter will generate extreme temperatures, such as hot or cold, to eliminate the targeted heart tissue associated with irregular heartbeats. Ablation is a non-surgical procedure used to correct certain heart rhythm abnormalities, including atrial fibrillation. During an ablation procedure, a thin, flexible tube called a catheter is guided to the interior of the heart from the patient's groin.

This new process called Farapulse Ablation relies on non-thermal electric fields that are tissue-selective. It will destroy stray cells by making holes in them with electrical shocks. It can selectively destroy heart tissue without affecting other critical surrounding areas, such as the esophagus or major nerves, which is a downside of traditional ablation procedures. According to researchers, the Farapulse Ablation process has proven very effective in permanently silencing abnormal heart signals. It is expected that this study will provide definitive evidence for a change in how electrophysiologists treat patients with atrial fibrillation.

Read more from:
COURIER SPOTLIGHT
Tags: 
None
Share: 
Comment   Email   Print
Powered by Bondware
News Publishing Software

The browser you are using is outdated!

You may not be getting all you can out of your browsing experience
and may be open to security risks!

Consider upgrading to the latest version of your browser or choose on below: