An independent, multicentre study has found the Niobe remote magnetic navigation system reports greater success rates than manual catheters. The results of the study, which looked at the procedural benefits and outcomes of patients undergoing radio frequency ablation therapy for ventricular tachycardia, were published at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions (AHA). According to Stereotaxis, they represent the most significant long-term outcomes to date with the Niobe system in VT.
“This study supports the strength of the Niobe system in effectively finding and eliminating even the most difficult to treat arrhythmias,” says Andrea Natale, executive medical director of Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute (TCAI) at St. David’s Medical Center. “Our findings revealed a greater long-term success rate among the Niobe patient group-81.2% compared to 69% for the manual catheter group-which we attribute to the system’s mapping capabilities and catheter tip control, enabling operators to pinpoint, access, and thoroughly ablate the affected scar area.”
J David Burkhardt, of the TCAI at St. David’s Medical Center, who recently completed his 1,000th case with the Niobe system, adds, “With manual ablation, VT procedures are time consuming and the outcomes might be adversely affected by operator fatigue.”
The retrospective study reported on a total of 218 consecutive patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy and scar size greater than 60 cm2 undergoing VT ablation in multiple centres. Eighty patients were treated with manual ablation and 138 patients underwent ablation with the Niobe system. Substrate mapping and an ablation technique utilizing scar homogenisation were performed, with the end point of elimination of all abnormal electrograms within and around the scar area. The density of mapping was higher (p<0.001) and the mean mapping time was lower (p<0.001) in the Niobe group when compared to the manual ablation group. Moreover, while acute success was achieved in 99.5% of all patients, at 15±6.8 month follow-up, 81.2% of patients in the Niobe group were VT recurrence free compared to 69% of the manual catheter patient group (p=0.037).
