Yesterday Dr Ng at Glenfield Hospital achieved another world first by being the first cardiologist in the world to use the new Biosense-Webster Smart Touch Catheter with the Amigo robot.

The Smart Touch catheter is an irrigated tip ablation catheter for use in the heart for ablation procedures. It allows users to guage how much force there is at the tip of the catheter providing an indication of the level of electrical contact. Dr Ng said afterwards that the Amigo (which allows for remote operation of the catheter in a cath lab setting) and the Smart Touch catheter is an interesting and exciting combination.

The patient was undergoing a pulmonary vein isolation procedure to treat Atrial Fibrillation. Dr Ng was able to manipulate the catheter using the Amigo robot in order to place the catheter at the site of ablation. He was then able to monitor the electrical contact between the catheter and the tissue on the inside of the left atrium by observing the force measured directly at the tip of the catheter. [Aug 2011]