Last week was another UK first with Dr Edward Rowland and Dr Oliver Segal performing the first UK Endoscopic Laser ablation for the treatment of Atrial Fibrillation at the Heart Hospital, London. The procedure involves the electrical isolation of pulmonary veins in the left atrium, a procedure usually conducted using Radio Frequency energy and navigation tools. What made this procedure very different is that for the first time it was possible to visibly see inside the heart using an endoscopic camera inside the catheter whilst performing the ablation using laser energy. 

A balloon was inflated inside each pulmonary vein which occluded the blood flow. The laser was then moved around the circumference of the balloon ablating the tissue whilst being observed through the endoscopic camera. It was then relatively easy to see where the tissue has been ablated and where the tissue needs to be ablated. At the end of the case each vein had been completely 100% isolated after a single encirclement of the laser. Dr Segal said afterwards that this procedure is very exciting and allows us to look in a dimension we have never seen before which has got to be good for accuracy, success and patient safety.  

Steve Sagon, President and CEO of Cardiofocus Inc, the manufacturer of the HeartLight Laser balloon, said afterwards that this is a pretty exciting time in the UK for the treatment of Atrial Fibrillation. The HeartLight Catheter has been developed as a "one size fits all" compliant balloon and negates the need to use complex navigation mapping systems for the treatment of Atrial Fibrilation.

The procedure was filmed by Sky-News and can be seen at http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16052611 . The HeartHospital also published an article on the event at http://www.uclh.org/News/Pages/Laserballoonusedinbreakthroughheartoperation.aspx [Aug 2011]

Click here to go to CardioFocus website

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