Medtronic's Cardioblate BP2 Helps Surgeons Block Erratic Heartbeats

Medtronic announced the U.S. commercial introduction of the Cardioblate BP2 Surgical Ablation System, which offers cardiac surgeons new ease and flexibility in creating ablation lines during open heart procedures, including the "Maze III" procedure.

The Cardioblate BP2 system consists of the Cardioblate BP2 device, a Cardioblate pen and generator. The Cardioblate BP2 device incorporates dual linear electrodes delivering bipolar irrigated radiofrequency energy to heart tissue at the touch of a trigger. Saline irrigation facilitates energy flow, allowing swift, deep heating that quickly neutralizes cells in a linear fashion. The low profile, slim, flexible neck and rotating head of the Cardioblate BP2 device eases access to all necessary areas of the heart. Its two 7-cm, malleable electrodes can be individually shaped by the surgeon to conform to the heart's contours for precise tissue contact.

The Cardioblate system is the first surgical ablation system able to create all necessary lesions of the Maze III procedure without additional equipment. The Maze procedure is so named because it creates a Maze of incisions within the atria that blocks the re-entry pathways of atrial fibrillation (AF). It is the only surgical treatment that can alleviate the three physiologic sequelae of AF: tachycardia, thromboembolism and hemodynamic compromise.