Ablation catheter with radial force detection

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for providing and using an ablation catheter. The catheter may include a ring electrode having a contact force sensor that provides signals to a system controller to indicate whether the ablation electrode is in contact with the tissue to be ablated as well as how much of the ablation electrode is in contact with the tissue.

Description

technical field [0001] The present disclosure relates generally to methods and devices for percutaneous medical treatment, and in particular to catheters, particularly ablation catheters. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to ablation catheter designs having radial force detection sensors connected to ablation electrodes. Background technique [0002] Radiofrequency (RF) leads have been commonly used in medical practice for many years. They are used to stimulate and map electrical activity in the heart, as well as to ablate sites of abnormal electrical activity. In particular, targeted ablation can be performed to achieve various indications. For example, ablation of myocardial tissue is a well-known arrhythmia treatment that uses a catheter to apply RF energy and create an ablation lesion to disrupt arrhythmogenic electrical pathways in cardiac tissue. As another example, a renal ablation procedure may involve inserting a single or multi-electrode catheter...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

However, for multi-electrode devices, force feedback sensors are not available to provide similar information for each of the electrodes positioned along the length of the catheter

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