> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Device can kick-start your heart - URL: https://www.smdp.com/device-can-kick-start-your-heart/ - Published: 2007-03-21T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T00:16:30.000Z - Author: Kevin Herrera - Tags: Health, Santa Monica, #archive-import *Tiny device can accomplish much* ST. JOHN’S HEALTH CENTER A broken heart is hard to mend, but it’s getting easier thanks to new technology being tested here that allows doctors to travel deep within the pulmonary muscle and perform potentially life-saving surgery in as much time as it takes to pick up flowers, roast a duck and uncork a bottle of wine. Using an experimental, visually-guided laser catheter with a small balloon attached, cardiologist Shephal Doshi recently treated “short-circuiting” tissue in the upper chambers of a 58-year-old man with an irregular heartbeat. If left untreated, the rapid, ineffective beating of the atria — one form of arrhythmia — can cause permanent damage, such as heart failure and death. Stagnant blood in the atria can also form clots and lead to a stroke. The new device, known as the Endoscopic Ablation System, by Massachusetts-based CardioFocus Inc., is expected to make the treatment of arrhythmia easier, more precise and less painful. “Since the procedure was performed five days ago, the patient hasn’t had a single attack. He is feeling very well,” said Doshi, the first physician in the United States to use the catheter. St. John’s is the first medical institution to participate in the ENABLE trial, a multi-center clinical investigation set to take place in 20 hospitals nationwide. The trial is part of the approval process set forth by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “For the first time, we can see directly into the heart and treat areas that are not ‘short circuiting’ with more precision,” Doshi said. “We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to do this cutting-edge work and, hopefully, this technology makes treatment more successful and safer … We want this technology to be enabling.” Atrial fibrillation is a rapid, uncontrolled beating of the atria — the two upper chambers of the heart. When the upper chambers “short circuit,” they don’t completely fill with blood, causing the lower chambers to beat erratically and pump lower than normal volumes. As a result, patients experience palpitations, chest discomfort and breathlessness. In severe cases, the person can become weak and faint, which can be life-threatening. “When most people think of the heart, they think of it as a pump, but no one thinks about the electrical system that works hard keeping the pumps going,” said Stephen Sagon, president of CardioFocus Inc.“If the pump is blocked, or the electrical system fails, the blood doesn’t flow properly.” The disorder affects nearly 2.3 million Americans and is caused by congestive heart failure, heart attack, disease of the heart valves, high blood pressure and infection. In 20 to 35 percent of cases, the cause is unknown. Doshi expects the number of sufferers to increase as the Baby Boomer generation ages. Patients with the disorder have a risk of stroke five to six times higher than normal and need carefully controlled blood-thinning therapy to reduce this risk. “I felt my heart jumping all over the place. I was lightheaded, dizzy and had trouble sleeping,” Doshi’s patient said.“Medicine only helped for a little while, so I’m hoping to find a permanent treatment to help me feel better.” Doshi said his patient was very active and traveled frequently for his job before he noticed the ill effects of the disorder. He then began to feel dizzy at certain times of the day, was having trouble sleeping and could no longer exercise as often or for as long as he used to. “For him, it was definitely a quality of life issue,” Doshi said. The procedure itself took about three hours to complete. Doshi and his colleagues inserted a slender catheter into a vein in the patient’s right leg. The catheter was threaded up into his chest and guided into a large vein in his heart using the experimental, pin-sized video camera, small amounts of real time z-ray and ultrasound imaging. Once in the area with the “short-circuiting” tissue, Doshi inflated a balloon and was able to visualize the target tissue for the first time. Before, doctors had to rely solely on X-rays and ultrasounds that created a rough model of the heart, but nothing could provide such a clear, live view of the affected area like the new catheter. Once the target was located, Doshi used a laser, which released precisely controlled arcs of light around the vein. Several bursts of laser energy were able to destroy an area of abnormal tissue while causing no significant damage to surrounding healthy heart muscle. Doshi treated all four pulmonary veins within the heart, which were “misfiring. The patient was sedated during the procedure, but was back to work within a few days and felt no pain or burning in his chest, something which comes with the more common procedure that uses radio frequencies to burn heart tissue. While Doshi believes the operation a success, he will continue to monitor his patient for at least a year as part of the FDA study. Doshi is quick to point out that this is not yet a definitive treatment, however, he believes it could soon be the best way to treat atrial fibrillation. “The procedure went so smoothly and I was pleasantly surprised by how durable it was,” Doshi said. “We encourage other centers to get up to speed and join us … because the sooner we get patients enrolled, the sooner we get all the data in and we get this approved.” Sagon expects FDA approval within the next three years. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 21, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/032107.pdf?ref=smdp.com)