MARLBOROUGH, MASS. -- June 6, 2017 -– CardioFocus, Inc. today announced the electrophysiology team at Na Homolce Hospital in Prague, Czech Republic is the first to successfully treat 500 patients using the HeartLight® Endoscopic Ablation System.

The HeartLight System is a visually guided laser balloon technology for controlled and consistent pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) treatment of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF). It provides an effective and safe treatment option for patients whose heart arrhythmias are insufficiently controlled with medication.

Head of the Department of Cardiology at Na Homolce, Professor Petr Neužil, and his team are among the earliest adopters of the HeartLight laser balloon technology. In addition to achieving the 500th-patient milestone, the hospital first served as a primary investigative site during clinical trials in the European Union (EU) and then as the first center in Europe to offer the HeartLight System following EU commercialization.
In 2014, the hospital published its long-term outcomes with the HeartLight System, demonstrating that 82 percent of its patients remained free of AF one year after the treatment and 75 percent remained free at four years. Most recently, Na Homolce has initiated a clinical evaluation of CardioFocus' next-generation HeartLight Excalibur Balloon™, which leverages the system's proven universal balloon design and introduces an advanced feature set that optimizes the speed and magnitude of target tissue contact during PVI procedures.

"Over the last seven years, our team has become extremely proficient in achieving durable PVI using HeartLight. With direct visualization – as opposed to relying on x-ray or mapping support for guidance – we are able to isolate patients' pulmonary veins of varying size," said Professor Neužil. "Successfully treating 500 patients with this device is a notable achievement for us as we continue to provide the most effective therapy options to those suffering from AF."

"Na Homolce is a world-class facility that embraces state-of-the-art technology as part of their commitment to provide the highest quality of care," said Paul A. LaViolette, Executive Chairman of CardioFocus. "The 500-patient milestone highlights the physicians' long-term experience and success with HeartLight and underscores their dedication to improved patient outcomes. We congratulate Professor Neužil and his team on this significant achievement and look forward to continued collaboration in the future."

A private event to commemorate the 500th patient milestone will be held at on 16-June 2017.

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