Flemish hospital is world's first to treat heart patient with revolutionary catheter
AZ Sint-Jan Brugge-Oostende in West Flanders has become the first hospital in the world to treat a heart patient with arrhythmia using the Omnypulse catheter. The technique can help patients who do not respond to standard medication.
The treatment is part of a clinical trial to treat drug-resistant forms of atrial fibrillation. In this condition, patients have symptoms of a sudden irregular heartbeat, but the heart does not respond to standard medication. The hospital is working with Biosense Webster, part of the US pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson.
"It is expected that this new catheter technology will further simplify and make safer the treatment of atrial fibrillation"
"It is expected that this new catheter technology will further simplify and make safer the treatment of atrial fibrillation and other cardiac arrhythmias," the hospital said in a press release.
A large clinical trial involving 135 patients in Europe and Canada will follow. Atrial fibrillation is a common heart condition that affects nearly 40 million people worldwide, including 11 million in Europe. About one in four adults over the age of 40 is at risk.
#FlandersNewsService | The AZ Sint Jan hospital in Brugge © BELGA PHOTO JAMES ARTHUR GEKIERE
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