TORONTO – Kardium Inc. has secured US$115 million in private money to accelerate commercial growth in Europe of a mapping and ablation system for atrial fibrillation (AF), and conduct a clinical study for FDA approval of the system. Led by Fidelity Management & Research Co. LLC, this funding tranche follows a US$40 million investment in Kardium in 2018 driven by T. Rowe Price Associates Inc., which also invested this time around.

Medtronic plc received U.S. FDA premarket approval of its Diamondtemp Ablation (DTA) system for treatment of patients with recurrent, symptomatic paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. The temperature-controlled radiofrequency (RF) ablation system features industrial-grade diamonds, which provide 200 to 400 times the thermal conductivity seen in conventional ablation and enable more efficient delivery of energy to regions of the heart responsible for the erratic electrical signals underlying atrial fibrillation (AF).