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.

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.

Biosense Webster Inc. scored approval from Japan’s Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare’s (MHLW) for its Varipulse pulsed field ablation platform to treat symptomatic drug-refractory recurrent paroxysmal atrial fibrillation on Jan. 9., making it the first PFA system approved in the country.

After years of aggressive acquisitions, Medtronic plc joined 3M Co., General Electric Co. and Johnson & Johnson in rationalizing its business by splitting into more focused enterprises. Medtronic will separate its patient monitoring and respiratory therapy groups into a new company with projected annual revenue of $2.2 billion and 8,000 employees in the next 12 to 18 months, assuming regulatory and final board approvals.

Medtronic plc continued its aggressive acquisition strategy today with the announcement of an agreement to purchase Affera Inc. Medtronic Chairman and CEO Geoff Martha revealed in a presentation on Jan. 10 at the virtual edition of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference that his company was paying $925 million for the cardiac mapping and navigation company. The total reflects $250 million in payments assuming Affera meets “contingent considerations.”