Electrophysiology catheter design
AssigneeMedtronic Ablation Frontiers LLC
InventorsMark T. Stewart, Mark Allen Benscoter, Jon Virgil Evans, Timothy G. Laske, Gonzalo Martinez
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention relates to a method, device, and system for improved mapping and/or ablation of a tissue. The device may generally include an elongate body and a distal assembly affixed to the elongate body that includes a treatment electrode having a conductive mapping region and a selectively conductive ablation region that is conductive of high-frequency current and substantially non-conductive of low-frequency current. Alternatively, the device may generally include a treatment electrode having a conductive mapping or ablation region and a region that is coated with an electrically insulated but thermally conductive layer.
Claims13
A method of mapping and ablating tissue comprising:
- providing a device including a distal assembly comprising one or more conductive regions and one or more selectively conductive regions, the one or more conductive regions and one or more selectively conductive regions being in electrical communication with a high-frequency energy source, and the one or more selectively conductive regions being conductive of high-frequency energy and substantially non-conductive of low-frequency electric current;
- positioning the distal assembly in contact with an area of target tissue;
- recording at least one electrogram from the area of target tissue with the conductive region of the distal assembly;
- determining whether the at least one electrogram indicates a presence of an aberrant electrical pathway within the area of target tissue;
- and
- when the presence of an aberrant electrical pathway within the area of target tissue is indicated, transmitting a high-frequency energy to the conductive region and the selectively conductive region, the conductive region and selectively conductive region ablating at least a portion of the area of target tissue.
A method of mapping and ablating tissue comprising:
- providing a device including a distal assembly having one or more conductive regions and one or more selectively conductive regions, the one or more conductive regions and one or more selectively conductive regions being in electrical communication with a high-frequency energy source, and the one or more selectively conductive regions being conductive of high-frequency energy and substantially non-conductive of low-frequency electric current;
- positioning the distal assembly in contact with an area of target tissue;
- recording at least one electrogram from the area of target tissue with the conductive region of the distal assembly;
- determining whether the at least one electrogram indicates a presence of an aberrant electrical pathway within the area of target tissue;
- and
- when the presence of an aberrant electrical pathway within the area of target tissue is indicated, transmitting a high-frequency energy to the conductive region and the selectively conductive region, the conductive region and selectively conductive region ablating at least a portion of the area of target tissue,
- wherein the one or more selectively conductive regions includes an outer layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.