Doylestown Health Expands Treatment Options For Atrial Fibrillation

DOYLESTOWN, PA — Doylestown Health is broadening its treatment options for atrial fibrillation patients with a revolutionary system that recently received approval from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

AFib is a progressive disease that occurs when the heart's upper chambers beat out of rhythm. As a result, blood is not pumped efficiently to the rest of the body. It is the most common atrial arrhythmia, affecting nearly 60 million people worldwide, and is associated with serious complications including heart failure, stroke and increased risk of death.

The Affera Mapping and Ablation System with Sphere-9 Catheter is an all-in-one high-density (HD) mapping and dual-energy ablation pulsed field (PF) and radiofrequency (RF) catheter for the treatment of persistent AFib and ablation of cavotricuspid isthmus dependent atrial flutter using RF energy. In clinical trials, patients treated with the Sphere-9 catheter experienced improvements in quality of life for both mental and physical well-being.

“The Sphere-9 catheter allows physicians to map, ablate, and validate all with a single catheter, enhancing the safety of ablation procedures for our patients,” said Robert M. Sangrigoli, MD, Director of the Electrophysiology Lab at Doylestown Hospital. “Doylestown Health’s heart and vascular team has always been committed to identifying ways to improve and accelerate our ability to treat patients, and this technology will bring better care to patients suffering from AFib.”

The first procedure at Doylestown Hospital was performed by Dr. Sangrigoli, who started the Electrophysiology Program at Doylestown Hospital in 2001. Doylestown Hospital is among just 16 in the nation and the first in the state of Pennsylvania to utilize this cutting-edge technology.

Doylestown Health electrophysiologists Dr. Sangrigoli and John D. Harding, MD, participated in the clinical trials leading to the first PFA delivery systems to receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, including the Affera Mapping and Ablation System.

The Affera Mapping and Ablation System enables physicians to customize treatment based on a patient’s needs during an ablation procedure, using different energy sources and mapping capabilities to correct fast, abnormal heart rhythms. With the increasing number of patients with AFib and the recent U.S. FDA approval, the Affera system has the potential to provide a life-changing solution for people with AFib.

By adding the Affera Mapping and Ablation System to the hospital’s existing pulsed field ablation technology, Doylestown Health's Heart & Vascular Services can now offer patients with rhythm disorders options to address their unique circumstances.