Andover, Mass. - Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG; AEX: PHI) has installed new cardiac electrophysiology (EP) labs at University of California San Francisco Medical Center, San Francisco, and St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Boston, designed to improve catheter navigation within the heart's chambers. Pairing the ceiling-mounted Philips Allura Xper FD10 X-ray system together with the Stereotaxis Niobe system using magnetic navigation capabilities, the combined solution provides better reliability, flexibility and improved catheter stability for physicians during complex interventional cardiovascular procedures.

The combination system dramatically enhances care for patients and staff by enabling operators to treat complex lesions with greater confidence and is expected to speed up procedures through precise, accurate and reproducible navigation of catheters and guide wires to targeted locations. Cardiac electrophysiology is the study of the electrical properties of the heart's cells and tissues. According to the Heart Rhythm Society, electrophysiology is the fastest growing of all the cardiovascular disciplines.

Creating a magnetic field through the patient that interacts with a small magnet tip in the catheter, this integrated platform allows operators to precisely align and place catheters and guidewires through the heart and the coronary vasculature. This is necessary for routine procedures such as surgical treatment of rapid rhythm of the heart (supraventricular tachycardia), as well as complex procedures such as treating a fast heartbeat originating in the ventricles (ventricular tachycardia) or irregular muscle contractions in the heart (atrial arrhythmias) Burkhardt et al., Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology (JCE), 2006; Thornton et al., Heart Rhythm, 2006 Ernst et al., Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology (JCE), 2005: Euro pace 2005
"We use the Niobe system in 40 percent of cases in the lab, and in that time the combination Allura Xper and Niobe system has proven to be highly reliable and has helped our staff to better manage the lab," said Dr. Charles Haffajee, director of cardiac electrophysiology program, St. Elizabeth's Hospital. "Our clinicians are also able to use a rotational scan, which gives a 3D-view of the coronary vasculature, instead of standard 2D projections from one angle. As published studies by Drs. John D. Carroll and James T. Maddux indicate, rotational scans help solve 2D's misrepresentation of reality and provide an interventional tool, which helps to reduce contrast and dose." (John D. Carroll, MD, James T. Maddux, MD, et al. Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions 62:167-174 (2004))

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