October 28, 2024- Medtronic plc announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the Affera™ Mapping and Ablation System with Sphere-9™ Catheter, an all-in-one, high-density (HD) mapping and pulsed field (PF) and radiofrequency (RF) ablation catheter for treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation (AFib) and for RF ablation of cavotricuspid isthmus (CTI) dependent atrial flutter.
With this approval, Medtronic is now the first and only company with two PFA technologies available for patients with Afib. The PulseSelect™ Pulsed Field Ablation System, which was FDA approved in December 2023, offers physicians a safe, single-shot solution for pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) while the Affera Sphere-9 catheter enables physician treatment flexibility with its wide area focal design and 9mm lattice tip that can used with an 8.5Fr sheath.