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In an effort to better care for those with atrial fibrillation, a cardiovascular team at The Valley Hospital recently treated the first patient in New Jersey – and one of the first in the nation – with a new technology called the PulseSelect Pulsed Field Ablation System.

Atrial fibrillation – or AFib – “is an irregular and often very rapid heart rhythm” that may cause a fast, pounding heartbeat, shortness of breath or light-headedness, according to the Mayo Clinic. Valley Health added that the condition can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure and other heart-related complications. 

Traditional treatments typically employ thermal ablation. However, this new technology – manufactured by Medtronic – uses pulsed electrical fields. As a result, the treatment may lead to better patient outcomes. 

The PulseSelect PFA system sends these fields through an ablation catheter designed to interrupt irregular electrical pathways in the heart that trigger AFib, according to Valley. As opposed to thermal ablation, the PFA system isolates pulmonary veins. Consequently, the treatment offers a lower risk of adverse affects for collateral tissue.

‘A growing cardiac concern’

The procedure was performed by Dr. Suneet Mittal, director of electrophysiology and medical director of The Snyder Center for Comprehensive Atrial Fibrillation at The Valley Hospital. Mittal is also chair of the Cardiovascular Service Line for Valley Health System. 

“Atrial fibrillation is a growing cardiac concern worldwide and we are seeing more patients coming in looking for treatment,” Mittal said in a statement. “The PulseSelect PFA system provides patients with a treatment option that reduces the potential for unwanted injury to surrounding tissue which can occur with traditional ablation technologies.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 12.1 million people in the U.S. will have AFib in 2030.

Mittal added, “We are pleased to have treated our first patient with this new technology, and we look forward to helping many others with this approach.” 

In August 2023, the Ridgewood hospital ranked No. 11 on NJBIZ Lists’ Top Cardiac Care Centers in New Jersey (page 20). This followed a January 2o23 announcement it was the first medical institution in the world to use new technology from Abiomed during a high-risk coronary stenting procedure. That development marked “a tremendous step forward” in the field, according to Dr. Rajiv Tayal, director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory and Structural Heart Program at The Valley Hospital.