Health and medical research

New Cardiac Catheterization and Electrophysiology Labs

10.2006

The UCSF Heart and Vascular Center is celebrating the opening of its new Cardiac Catheterization and Electrophysiology Labs on October 30. The new suites feature state-of-the-art equipment that is the first of its kind in California. The opening also marks the 25th anniversary of the first radiofrequency catheter ablation, a technique pioneered and performed at UCSF by electrophysiology expert Mel Scheinman. MD.

Catheter ablation is successful in treating 90-98 percent of arrhythmia cases, according to the American Heart Association, and the procedure has all but eliminated the need for open-heart surgery or long-term drug therapy for hundreds of thousands of patients with this disorder.

UCSF is the first institution in California to implement a magnetic navigation system that uses computer-controlled magnets, instead of manual guidance by physi cians, to steer catheters and guidewires for electrophysiology studies and ablations.

Labs are equipped with the latest visualization tools, providing 3-D mapping that is quicker and more accurate than previous systems and that allows UCSF physicians to identify and correct complex problems with more precision and fewer complications.

The opening of the new labs marks the 25th anniversary of the first-ever cardiac catheter ablation performed by Mel Scheinman, MD. A true innovator in the field of electrophysiology, Scheinman is often referred to as the “father of catheter ablation” in the world of medicine. Today, the procedure he pioneered at UCSF is performed regularly worldwide. Approximately 20,000 ablations are performed each year in the United States alone. More than 400 are performed annually at UCSF.