Boston Scientific Corp.’s OPTION study demonstrated left atrial appendage closure with the Watchman Flx device reduced risk of stroke compared to management with direct oral anticoagulants or warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation following cardiac ablation. Results were presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2024 and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Boston Scientific Corp. resumed enrollment in the AVANT GUARD trial of the Farapulse pulse field ablation (PFA) system after a pause reported in October “to assess a few unanticipated observations.” The trial aims to expand the indications for the market-leading PFA system to include a new population, drug-naïve patients with persistent atrial fibrillation.

Almost a year after U.S. FDA approval of the first pulsed field ablation device for treatment of atrial fibrillation, Johnson & Johnson secured FDA approval for its Varipulse system, intensifying competition in the rapidly growing market.

Medtronic plc added a second U.S. FDA pulsed field ablation (PFA) device approval to its scorecard with the agency’s greenlight for its Affera mapping and ablation system with the Sphere-9 catheter. Affera brings the first radiofrequency/PFA device to the cardiac ablation market and ups the ante in the PFA competition.

Boston Scientific Corp. posted another eye-popping quarterly report, led by a 177% year-over-year increase in its electrophysiology business to $527 million, which exceeded consensus expectations by $99 million. That stunning EP growth follows 125% growth in the second quarter and 70% in the first quarter, all largely attributed to the Farapulse pulsed field ablation system, which achieved unprecedented adoption rates.

Since the U.S. FDA’s approval of the first pulsed field ablation (PFA) system in the U.S. last December, PFA technology has rapidly reconfigured the electrophysiology market in the U.S. and ramped up sales of PFA systems in Europe.

Kardium Inc. landed $104 million in new financing for its Globe mapping and ablation system for atrial fibrillation, positioning it to enter the rapidly changing field in the U.S. The funds will allow the company to finish its PULSAR trial, secure FDA approval and launch its pulsed field ablation system commercially, Kardium Chief Financial Officer Koert VandenEnden told BioWorld.

The major players in electrophysiology – Boston Scientific Corp., Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic plc, Abbot Laboratories – showed up in force at the 2024 Heart Rhythm Society annual meeting in Boston May 16-19 to tout their pulsed field ablation devices and study results.

Pulsed field ablation dominated the news out of the Heart Rhythm Society meeting this week with three late-breaking studies highlighting the safety and efficacy of the technology replacing thermal ablation for treatment of atrial fibrillation and active discussion of the ‘unprecedented’ growth of these procedures. Boston Scientific Corp’s Farapulse is rapidly building dominance in the field, while results from Johnson & Johnson’s Varipulse study and Medtronic plc’s trial of the Affera system set up those companies for U.S. FDA approval later this year.

Field Medical Inc. kicked off its first-in-human study for its Fieldforce ablation system, designed for use in ventricular arrhythmias. The Ventricular Catheter Ablation Study study will enroll 60 patients in five centers around the world, most recently kicking off in the Na Homolce Hospital in Prague, Czech Republic.