Boca Raton Regional Hospital Using New Technology To Map Irregular Heart Rhythms Non-Invasively

The Medtronic CardioInsight^™ Noninvasive 3D Mapping System, introduced at Boca Regional by Murray Rosenbaum, MD, Director of Electrophysiology at the Hospital's Christine E. Lynn Heart & Vascular Institute and was first used in February of this year on an 84-year-old patient.

The system uses a 252-electrode sensor vest that is worn by the patient to match body surface electrical data with heart anatomy. The non-invasive technology creates 3D electro-anatomic maps of the heart by collecting electrocardiogram (ECG) signals from the chest, and combining these signals with data from a computed tomography (CT) scan of the heart. The vest technology contours to the patient's body and allows for continuous and simultaneous panoramic mapping of both atria or both ventricles non-invasively prior to the procedure. The 3D maps can be created by capturing a single heartbeat and enable rapid mapping of these heart rhythms. 

"This non-invasive mapping system has streamlined the clinical planning process for specialists like myself and has made it easy for patients to receive exquisite mapping results right at the bedside," said Dr. Rosenbaum. "The technology allows mapping of certain arrhythmias with high accuracy prior to entering the cath lab so that the entire procedure can be planned before touching the patient."

The most important role, Dr. Rosenbaum emphasized, is the fact that this technology offers a chance to rid atrial fibrillation when no other treatment is effective. This includes cases where initial ablation has failed, or in cases of persistent or chronic atrial fibrillation.

CardioInsight has the ability to locate with great precision what are called cardiac rotors. These points in the heart's electrical system are analogous to the eye of a hurricane; around which electrical activity called initiating spirals rotate causing the arrhythmia. Using this new mapping technology, the electrophysiologist can position an ablation catheter on the rotor centers. In some cases a single ablation can terminate the atrial fibrillation and restore the heart to normal rhythm. With conventional treatment, hours of ablation over a large area of the heart are needed, and results worldwide have been disappointing.  

"The advantages of this new technology are material," noted Dr. Rosenbaum. "It is a major paradigm shift in how we manage patients with chronic AFib and allows us to be more efficient and achieve better outcomes."

The Medtronic CardioInsight Noninvasive 3D Mapping System at Boca Regional was made possible through a generous philanthropic gift by Ronald H. and Joanne Willens.                   

About Boca Raton Regional Hospital – Advancing the boundaries of medicine. 
Boca Raton Regional Hospital is an advanced, tertiary medical center (BRRH.com) with 400 beds and more than 800 primary and specialty physicians on staff. The Hospital is a recognized leader in oncology, cardiovascular disease and surgery, minimally invasive surgery, orthopedics, women's health, emergency medicine and the neurosciences, all of which offer state-of-the-art diagnostic and imaging capabilities. The Hospital is a designated Comprehensive Stroke Center by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA).

SOURCE Boca Raton Regional Hospital

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