Abstract
PurposeOur previous study confirmed that not only force but also the catheter contact angle substantially impacted the contact area and its morphology. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to further investigate the relationship between the catheter contact area and the dimensions of the ablation lesion area as a function of catheter contact angle and force in radiofrequency catheter ablation.MethodsThe radiofrequency catheter ablation test was performed for 5 contact angles and 8 contact forces at a fixed ablation time of 30 s. The initial impedance was 92.5 ± 2.5 Ω, the temperature during ablation was 30 °C, and the power was 30 W. The irrigation rate during ablation was set to 17 mL/min. Each experiment was repeated 6 times.ResultsThe catheter contact area showed a strong correlation with the ablation lesion area (r = 0.8507). When the contact area was increased, the lesion area also increased linearly in a monotonic manner. The relationships between catheter contact force and ablation lesion area and between catheter contact force and ablation lesion depth are logarithmic functions in which increased contact force was associated with increased lesion area and depth. The catheter contact angle is also an important determinant of the lesion area. The lesion area progressively increased when the contact angle was decreased. In contrast, the lesion depth progressively increased when the contact angle was increased.ConclusionsThe catheter contact area was strongly correlated with the ablation lesion area. Additionally, catheter contact force and contact angle significantly impacted the dimensions of the lesion in radiofrequency catheter ablation procedures.
Highlights
Over the past three decades, radiofrequency (RF) catheter ablation therapy has become a widely used and effective treatment for tachyarrhythmia [1–6]
Given that the catheter contact area is a direct interface between the tip electrode of the ablation catheter and the surface of the heart tissue, we hypothesized that the contact area might be an effective parameter for controlling the dimensions of ablation lesion
We developed an experimental system to investigate the relationship of the catheter contact area on the surface of the heart tissue as a function of catheter contact angle and force
Summary
Over the past three decades, radiofrequency (RF) catheter ablation therapy has become a widely used and effective treatment for tachyarrhythmia [1–6]. In RF catheter ablation, the electrical current delivered from the tip electrode of the ablation catheter passes through the contact area of the heart tissue surface and blood. Given that the catheter contact area is a direct interface between the tip electrode of the ablation catheter and the surface of the heart tissue, we hypothesized that the contact area might be an effective parameter for controlling the dimensions of ablation lesion. We developed an experimental system to investigate the relationship of the catheter contact area on the surface of the heart tissue as a function of catheter contact angle and force. The results confirmed that the force and the catheter contact angle and contact force substantially impacted the contact area and its morphology [13].
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