Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital is proud to announce the treatment of the first patient in the Commonwealth of Virginia with the new, innovative FDA-approved procedure for atrial fibrillation (AFib). The Medtronic PulseSelect™ Pulsed Field Ablation (PFA) System utilizes pulsed electrical fields rather than thermal ablation, and effectively, efficiently, and safely treats both paroxysmal and persistent atrial fibrillation.
The first procedure was performed by Bon Secours - Cardiology Electrophysiologist An Barry Bui, MD, at Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond, Virginia, and is now available to patients living with AFib. Dr. Bui also serves as Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology for Bon Secours Richmond.
“It is estimated that more than 12 million Americans will have AFib by 2030. With this growing cardiac concern, we are proud to be on the cutting edge of treatment, offering the most innovative technology to our patients in Richmond,” said Dr. Bui. “The FDA-approved Pulsed Field Ablation system can provide patients with a treatment option that decreases the risk of unwanted injury to surrounding tissues that can be associated with traditional thermal ablation technologies, helping physicians put patient safety first. We are pleased to have treated our first patient with this new technology, and we look forward to helping advance the future of AFib treatment here in Central Virginia.”
According to the American Heart Association, Atrial Fibrillation is a quivering or irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia, which can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure and other heart-related complications. Untreated AFib doubles the risk of heart-related deaths and is associated with a fivefold increased risk for stroke.
The PulseSelect PFA system delivers pulsed electric fields through an ablation catheter designed specifically to interrupt irregular electrical pathways in the heart that trigger AFib. Current ablation technologies rely on thermal effects to target cardiac tissue and risk damage to additional collateral structures in the heart. PFA is a breakthrough ablation technology that uses pulsed electric fields to efficiently isolate the pulmonary veins for the treatment of AFib. Because the mechanism of cell death is non-thermal, the risk of collateral structure damage is potentially lower.
If you or someone you know has AFib, reach out to Bon Secours at 804-288-3123 to learn more about AFib treatments or to see if the PFA system could be a treatment option for you.