Images produced by the AcQMap High Resolution Imaging and Mapping System
Janet Szilagyi of New Jersey recently became the first person in the U.S. to undergo cardiac ablation with the new FDA-cleared AcQMap High-Resolution Imaging and Mapping System.
After eight years of failed treatment for persistent atrial fibrillation (AF), Penn Medicine decided to perform this procedure. Her surgeons expect that with standard follow-up she will return to normal life without severe threat of AF recurrence.
"Novel ablation approaches for patients with long-lasting atrial fibrillation are necessary since the long-term outcomes with the current ablation strategies are suboptimal,” Dr. Pasquale Santangeli, an assistant professor of cardiovascular medicine who performed the procedure, told HCB News.
There were many areas of Szilagyi’s heart that required ablation. Having access to this new technology enabled Santangeli to see more of those regions that he previously wouldn’t have been able to.
Acutus Medical's AcQMap High Resolution Imaging and Mapping System and the 3D Imaging and Mapping Catheter scored FDA clearance in October. It’s designated for patients with complex arrhythmias who might need a more extensive cardiac ablation procedure.
“The novelty of this system is that it allows for a rapid “panoramic” mapping of the human left atrium during ongoing atrial fibrillation to detect sites that are more likely to be responsible for AF drivers,” said Santangeli.
He believes that this system has the potential to significantly improve treatment accuracy. Data shows that ablation is successful for patients with persistent AF about 50 to 55 percent of the time, but researchers believe that could increase to 75 percent with the use of the new system.
But Santangeli cautioned that his team is still in the process of evaluating the new mapping system. More research is needed to determine if extending their standard ablation approach to target additional sites with the system improves long-term outcomes.
“The value of this system should be determined in a larger population of patients with longer follow-up periods to establish whether it may become the standard of care for the treatment of patients with persistent AF,” he added.
