Objective: To evaluate the size and depth of linear lesions by in vitro testing with a custom-made radio frequency biparietal bipolar ablation catheter in a single-stage setting.
Methods: A custom-made catheter was created to generate linear lesions around the left atrium and pulmonary veins of an ex vivo pig. Two frames were made, 1 epicardial and 1 endocardial. A continuous copper braid electrode and an alignment system consisting of 2 parallel rows of neodymium magnets were embedded in a flexible plastic support. After 24 hours of formalin conservation, samples of the left atrium of a freshly slaughtered pig were sliced in a cryotome, thus obtaining a sequence of 100-µm thick layers extending from the endocardial to the epicardial side. After being digitized through a scanner, these layers were evaluated using morphometric computer software. For each slice, we evaluated the maximum length of the lesions, the maximum epicardial length, the maximum endocardial length, the total area of the lesion, and the total volume.
Results: Forty transmural lesions from 40 specimens were obtained. The results were the following (the number in parenthesis is the interquartile range in mm): lesion maximum length (L MAX) was 7.297 mm (0.006), epicardial maximum length (L EPI) was 7.291 mm (0.014), and endocardial maximum length was 7.291 mm (0.018). The total area and total volume were 1018.50 ± 36.51 mm2 and 101.85 ± 3.65 mm3, respectively.
Conclusions: Our prototype showed very promising results. The next step will be to enhance the design for clinical application.
Keywords: atrial fibrillation; catheter ablation; hybrid ablation; surgical ablation.