Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix is the first hospital in the United States to use an innovative technology to treat patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, an intermittent form of atrial fibrillation which causes an irregular, abnormally fast heart rate. The POLARx Cryoablation System is a catheter device that enables two different-sized balloons used for cryoablation, a minimally invasive procedure that freezes tissue at the opening of pulmonary veins to create scarring that blocks irregular electrical signals which cause arrhythmia.
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The device was recently approved by the FDA and allows for more efficient procedures and aids physicians in targeting treatment to the areas of the heart that cause atrial fibrillation. By using the two different balloon sizes, physicians are able to adjust to fit patients’ unique anatomies and eliminate the need to change out devices, which can often be a time-consuming element during procedures.
Dr. Wilber Su, Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix electrophysiology director, performed the first case using the POLARx device. The technology has been used with more than 25,000 patients around the world and has received approval in locations such as Europe, Japan, and Canada.
“The new POLARx Cryoablation System is yet another breakthrough tool that we are thrilled to take advantage of here at our world-class cardiology center,” Dr. Su said. “Because of the device’s ability to expand and fit to patients’ different anatomies, we are much better suited to treat these kinds of cases and produce more positive outcomes as a result.”
About Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix
Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix is a large teaching hospital that has provided medical care to Arizona and the Southwest since 1911. It is part of Banner – University Medicine, a premier academic medical network. The institution, which has trained thousands of doctors over decades as a teaching hospital, is the academic medical center for The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix. The hospital, recognized by U.S. News and World Report as one of the nation’s best hospitals, specializes in heart care, cancer care, high-risk obstetrics, neurosciences, organ transplants, medical toxicology and emergency care, including a Level I trauma center. Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix is part of Banner Health, a nonprofit health care system with 33 hospitals in six states. For more information, visit bannerhealth.com/universityphoenix.
