Abbott ’ s new contact ablation catheter: Here ’ s what you need to know

The new TactiCath contact ablation catheter unites EndoSense and St. Jude Medical technologies that Abbott acquired, marrying fiber optics, flexibility and 3D mapping. [Image courtesy of Abbott]If you want your grilled cheese to cook faster, you press it into the pan with your spatula. That’s contact force, the principle behind Abbott’s TactiCath contact force ablation catheter, according to Srijoy Mahapatra, Abbott’s VP of medical, clinical and scientific affairs. Abbott acquired TactiCath with the purchase of St. Jude Medical this year. (St. Jude acquired Swiss company Endosense in 2013.) The latest version of the TactiCath, which won CE Mark approval in the European Union in May, unites the Endosense device with the EnSite Precision cardiac mapping system developed by St. Jude. Although cardiac tissue ablation is far more sophisticated than whipping up a grilled cheese, the physics of the issue are the same. The more force the surgeon uses when the catheter is touching the tissue, the bigger the lesion. “Too much force can be dangerous; too little force means no lesion,” Mahapatra explained. The new TactiCath is sensor-enabled and emphasizes accuracy and precision through dual impedance and magnetic technologies designed to precisely model the heart to determine where to apply optimal contact force. Get the full story on our sister site, Medical Design & Outsourcing. The post Abbott’s new contact ablation catheter: Here’s what you need to know app...
Source: Mass Device - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Cardiovascular Catheters Abbott Source Type: news