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Under a canopy of eight heart-monitoring screens in a cardiac catheterization lab on a recent Monday, Mayo Clinic doctors briefly paused a procedure treating atrial fibrillation to inspect a new tool: a long tube with what looked like flower petals made out of wire at its end. That wiry flower is the focus of a multibillion-dollar innovation race between some of the world’s largest medical technology companies. Medtronic and Boston Scientific, which both have major cardiac-device operations in Minnesota, and Johnson & Johnson MedTech are vying to control the large and fast-growing market for minimally invasive medical devices to treat the widespread heart problem atrial fibrillation with a safer and quicker procedure called pulsed field ablation (PFA). PFA uses electric pulses instead of extreme heat or cooling to ablate cardiac tissue around pulmonary veins on the heart, blocking bioelectric signals in the tissue that cause the heart’s atrial chambers to quiver, or fibrillate. Atrial fibrillation , or AFib, is believed to affect more than 10 million Americans, greatly increasing their risk of having a stroke, the latest scientific estimates show. Doctors say the new ablation procedure cuts down a patient’s time in the cath lab by hours, and reduces risks for serious complications compared to older techniques. Medtech executives expect the technology to help fuel their companies’ future growth. Boston Scientific CEO Mike Mahoney has said the company’s new Farapulse ablation system is “the most transformational product that I’ve seen in my career.” Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha has said, “We’re at one of those moments in medtech where a new technology is causing a rapid shift in the treatment of a disease. In this case, PFA is that technology.” Analytics company Clarivate projects pulsed field ablation devices will surpass $1.3 billion in sales globally this year, and the total number of procedures performed will at least quadruple in the next two to three years as PFA makes up an increasingly large share of all ablations performed. The Farapulse system was first to market in Europe, gaining regulatory approval in early 2021, before Boston Scientific acquired it later that year. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration then approved Medtronic’s system, called PulseSelect, last December. Then Farapulse, which includes hardware built in Minnesota, received FDA approval in January. Johnson & Johnson MedTech also received FDA approval for its Varipulse system earlier this month. The companies are now pushing to commercialize premium PFA systems that map the heart and reduce incisions into the body as the technology floods hospitals. Tony Crisci of Ocean City, N.J., said he held off for a procedure at Mount Sinai in New York until the new technology became available. “I thought I was just getting older, and I couldn’t work out as hard [without getting] out of breath,” Crisci, 67, said of his condition before he received treatment with Boston Scientific’s system. “But now I feel like 20 years younger.” ‘Second youth’ In the Mayo Clinic heart-catheterization lab, a patient was on the table swarmed by health care professionals, wires and massive devices that made the room look like the inside of a spacecraft by roughly 8:30 one recent morning. The ablation wrapped up by 10:30 a.m. That’s not how quickly AFib procedures formerly went. Older radiofrequency ablation tools use heat, taking minutes for each round of ablation near the pulmonary vein. During PFA, each electric pulse is delivered in a matter of nanoseconds during a secondslong delivery window, reducing the procedure’s time by hours. Mapping and monitoring the heart seemed to take longer than the ablation during the Mayo Clinic procedure. AFib is an irregular heart rhythm when the heart’s upper chambers chaotically beat out of sync with the lower chambers, increasing risk of stroke and heart failure. Mayo Electrophysiology laboratory director Dr. Suraj Kapa said incidence of the arrhythmia is expected to increase as the population becomes older and the world faces an obesity epidemic . Common symptoms include a racing or fluttering heart, lightheadedness, chest pain and extreme fatigue, but some patients have no symptoms: “It can range from somebody being totally asymptomatic — they don’t feel it at all — all the way to somebody feeling essentially like a truck ran them over,” Kapa said. Crisci, who had a PFA procedure at Mount Sinai, said he felt short of breath whenever he exerted himself in recent years. A doctor discovered his AFib during a routine physical in 2022. Patients can control AFib through medications or ablation procedures, but there’s no true cure. Dr. Khaldoun Tarakji, chief medical officer of Medtronic’s cardiac ablation unit, said anti-arrhythmic drugs can cause potentially fatal side effects. Boston Scientific Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ken Stein said drugs are often ineffective. “Even a decade ago,” Stein said, “it was clear that some type of ablation procedure was ultimately going to be preferred versus drugs for patients.” Pulsed field ablation is at least as effective and is certainly more efficient than conventional thermal ablation, which includes radiofrequency and cryoablation methods, Stein said. During a cryoablation procedure, a balloon expands inside a pulmonary vein, freezing tissue with extreme cold, said Dr. Henri Roukoz, director of electrophysiology at the University of Minnesota Medical Center. Radiofrequency ablation, which is more common, cauterizes tissue around the pulmonary vein point by point, in intervals that take minutes and add up to hours. Using thermal sources, doctors can inadvertently damage other organs like the esophagus, leading to rare but potentially fatal complications, Roukoz said. Pulsed field ablation uses a high voltage impulse to create pores in cells in the area surrounding the pulmonary vein, causing them to disintegrate and die, doctors said. Because the pulses are localized to targeted cells, doctors said there’s a smaller chance the procedure affects adjacent organs. Crisci said physicians offered him drugs or ablation but he declined long-term medication for treatment: “I don’t take aspirin or anything.” He said he held off on the procedure until he landed a spot in Johnson & Johnson MedTech’s clinical trial. Mapping the heart In the Mayo Clinic cath lab, Dr. Peter Noseworthy and Dr. Robert Ward made two incisions on the left and right side of the patient’s groin to insert catheters, which are thin tube-shaped devices physicians can advance to the heart through blood vessels, allowing access to the heart without open surgery. The doctors threaded a mapping catheter — with several tiny legs sprouting from its end — through the groin, moving it up blood vessels until it reached the heart. There, its metallic legs danced across the interior surface of the heart as the physician toggled the device’s controller. This produced a model of the heart that allowed the physicians to precisely identify spots for ablation. Then the physicians threaded a Farapulse catheter into the right incision and snaked it toward the heart. They poked a hole in the heart’s interior so the catheter could move from the right upper chamber to the left upper chamber, which the arrhythmia affects. The doctors delivered roughly eight electric pulses to the heart. Each pulse gets delivered after the tap of an iPad-like touchscreen. The procedure wraps up quickly. It’s at least as effective as radiofrequency ablation, but the arrhythmia can return, doctors say. Crisci said he healed quickly following his first ablation in March using the J & J technology, but he went back into AFib about a week and a half later. He received a second procedure in July, and he said he hasn’t had AFib since. Now, he’s hitting the gym more. “It’s really giving me a second youth,” Crisci said. Race to ablate At the electrophysiology divisions of the biggest medtech companies, executives spotted the promising market years ago. Boston Scientific acquired University of Iowa startup Farapulse in 2021 for hundreds of millions of dollars after first investing in the company in 2014. In 2022, Medtronic acquired Affera, the company behind its new catheter that ablates and maps the heart, for $925 million. Stein said physicians use Farapulse in the large majority of pulsed field procedures. Its Minnesota-based division within Boston Scientific grew by 177% on an organic basis during the most recent quarter. Jasmina Brooks, president of Johnson & Johnson MedTech’s electrophysiology division, said the company’s pulsed field system was the first in the U.S. to fully integrate with the company’s 3D heart-mapping system, which helps doctors visualize the heart as they position the catheter and deliver the energy. And Tarakji of Medtronic said the adoption of PFA “has even exceeded the wildest expectation.” With PulseSelect, he said patients often don’t experience some of the side effects of radiofrequency ablation like chest pain. He pointed out that that the company’s catheter has one of the smallest diameters, which can reduce recovery time. The race doesn’t come without obstacles. A supplier problem held back Medtronic PulseSelect sales for the most recent reported quarter. Boston Scientific paused an important clinical trial to expand the use of its technology as a first-line treatment for persistent AFib after making unanticipated observations — and then restarted it weeks later. The companies are now incorporating mapping technology into the ablating catheter to further streamline the procedure. And Tarakji said Medtronic is in early feasibility studies to study whether the company’s technology can treat a serious arrhythmia called ventricular tachycardia. Nick Spadea-Anello, president of Boston Scientific’s electrophysiology division, said the the new technology will fuel future innovation. Said Stein: “The potential now is to offer them ... a therapy that is safe, a therapy that’s effective and a therapy that is efficient for the system as a whole: It just changes patients’ lives.”
BIG TEN ROUNDUPJetliner skids off runway and bursts into flames while landing in South Korea, killing 179 SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A jetliner skidded off a runway, slammed into a concrete fence and burst into flames in South Korea after its landing gear apparently failed to deploy. Officials said all but two of the 181 people on board were killed Sunday in one of the country’s worst aviation disasters. The 737-800 operated by Jeju Air plane arrived from Bangkok and crashed while attempting to land in the town of Muan, about 290 kilometers (180 miles) south of Seoul. Footage of the crash aired by South Korean television channels showed the plane skidding across the airstrip at high speed, evidently with its landing gear still closed. Tornadoes in Texas and Mississippi kill 2 and injure 6 as severe weather system moves east HOUSTON (AP) — A strong storm system is threatening to whip up tornadoes in parts of the U.S. Southeast, a day after severe weather claimed at least two lives as twisters touched down in Texas and Mississippi. Strong storms moving eastward Sunday are expected to continue producing gusty, damaging winds, hail and tornadoes through Sunday. That is according to National Weather Service meteorologist Frank Pereira. So far, the line of severe weather has led to about 40 tornado reports from southeastern Texas to Alabama, Pereira said, but those reports remain unconfirmed until surveys of damage are completed. Israeli hospital says Netanyahu has undergone successful prostate surgery TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — An Israeli hospital says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has undergone successful prostate surgery. Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Center said his prostate was removed late Sunday and that he was recovering. Netanyahu’s office had said Justice Minister Yariv Levin, a close ally, would serve as acting prime minister during the procedure. Doctors ordered the operation after detecting an infection last week. Netanyahu is expected to remain hospitalized for several days. A fourth infant dies of the winter cold in Gaza as families share blankets in seaside tents DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A fourth infant has died of hypothermia in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by nearly 15 months of war are huddled in tents along the rainy, windswept coast as winter arrives. The baby's father says the 20-day-old child was found with his head as “cold as ice” Sunday morning in their tent. The baby’s twin brother was moved to the intensive care unit of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Their father says the twins were born one month premature and spent just a day in hospital, which like other Gaza health centers has been overwhelmed and only partially functions. Musk causes uproar for backing Germany's far-right party ahead of key elections BERLIN (AP) — Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has caused uproar after backing Germany’s far-right party in a major newspaper ahead of key parliamentary elections in the Western European country, leading to the resignation of the paper’s opinion editor in protest. Germany is to vote in an early election on Feb. 23 after Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party governing coalition collapsed last month in a dispute over how to revitalize the country’s stagnant economy. Musk’s guest opinion piece for Welt am Sonntag, published in German over the weekend, was the second time this month he supported the Alternative for Germany, or AfD. 2024 was a year of triumphs and setbacks for Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Here's how it unfolded The year 2024 saw President Vladimir Putin further cement his power as he sought to counter Russia's isolation over the war in Ukraine. He won a fifth term that will keep him in office until 2030 following an election with only token opposition. He tightened a political crackdown on Russian society, and his top opponent, Alexei Navalny, died in prison under still unknown circumstances. But gunmen massacred scores of people in a Moscow concert hall, and a bomb killed a top general in attacks that underscored security flaws. Ukrainian forces swept into the Russian region of Kursk, Putin boasted about a lethal new hypersonic missile, and a new Trump administration raised concerns about continued U.S. support for Ukraine. Azerbaijan's president says crashed jetliner was shot down by Russia unintentionally Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev says the Azerbaijani airliner that crashed last week was shot down by Russia, albeit unintentionally. Aliyev told Azerbaijani state television on Sunday that the aircraft was hit by fire from the ground over Russia and rendered uncontrollable by electronic warfare. He accused Russia of trying to “hush up” the issue for several days. The crash on Wednesday killed 38 of 67 people on board. Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Aliyev on Saturday for what he called a “tragic incident” but stopped short of acknowledging Moscow’s responsibility. Russian man arrested for allegedly running LGBTQ+ travel agency found dead in custody A Russian man arrested for allegedly running a travel agency for gay customers has been found dead in custody in Moscow. That's according to independent news outlet Mediazona on Sunday. According to OVD-Info, Andrei Kotov of the Men Travel agency was in pretrial detention facing extremism charges. An investigator told Kotov’s lawyer that her client had died by suicide and was found dead in his cell. Just over a year ago, Russia’s Supreme Court effectively outlawed any LGBTQ+ activism in a ruling that designated “the international LGBT movement” as extremist. The move exposed anyone in the community or connected to it to criminal prosecution and prison. Syria's dwindling Jewish community can visit one of the world's oldest synagogues again JOBAR, Syria (AP) — Syria's civil war left one of the world's oldest synagogues partially destroyed. Now Syria's handful of remaining Jews are making pilgrimages to the synagogue in a Damascus suburb where people from throughout the region once came to pray. Syria used to have one of the world's largest Jewish communities, but in past decades their numbers dropped to nine in the capital. The head of the Jewish community there says Jewish personalities are offering to rebuild the Jobar synagogue that dates back nearly 3,000 years. It was badly damaged by bombardment when the neighborhood was controlled by opposition fighters. LeBron James at 40: A milestone birthday arrives Monday for the NBA's all-time scoring leader When LeBron James broke another NBA record earlier this month, the one for most regular-season minutes played in a career, his Los Angeles Lakers teammates handled the moment in typical locker room fashion. They made fun of him. Dubbed The Kid from Akron, with a limitless future, James is now the 40-year-old from Los Angeles with wisps of gray in his beard, his milestone birthday coming Monday, one that will make him the first player in NBA history to play in his teens, 20s, 30s and 40s. He has stood and excelled in the spotlight his entire career.
After a thrilling double-overtime win over Fresno State, California Baptist makes the nearly 2,500-mile trip to Orlando to face Central Florida on Sunday. The Lancers (5-3) capped their time at the Acrisure Holiday Invitational in Palm Springs, Calif., with an 86-81 victory over the Bulldogs on Wednesday. That followed a last-second, 79-77 loss to SMU the day before. Dominique Daniels Jr. played 45 minutes against Fresno State and led California Baptist with 29 points. He paces the Lancers with 20.3 points per game, while Kendal Coleman averages 15.1 points and is shooting 59.7 percent form the floor. However, coach Rick Croy's team has struggled from 3-point range, shooting just 30.7 percent entering its first true road game this season. UCF (5-2) is coming off of an 84-76 win over Milwaukee last Wednesday despite being outrebounded 41-31. The Knights were helped by the heroics of senior guard Darius Johnson, who had 28 points as he shot a career-best 8-for-10 from beyond the arc. "Darius was terrific," UCF coach Johnny Dawkins said. "He's so comfortable in his leadership role now, he's leading our team and running the show, and our new players are becoming more comfortable playing with him. He's been a rock for us this season, and you love to see it out of a senior point guard." "I had an extraordinary night shooting the ball from three," Johnson said. "I rarely think that would happen again, but it's great. I know my teammates are going to have nights like that as well." Johnson is among the nation's leaders in minutes per game (36.6) and is shooting a team-high 50 percent from 3-point range (23 of 46). He, along with his fellow guard Jordan Ivy-Curry, are each averaging 16.9 points to lead UCF. The Knights opened the season with an impressive win over Texas A&M, now No. 20 in the AP poll, but lost both games at last weekend's Greenbrier Tip-Off, including a triple-overtime defeat against LSU on Sunday. UCF has not reached the NCAA Tournament since 2018-19. This will be the first meeting between the Knights and the Lancers, who will each have time off afterwards. UCF won't play until Dec. 8 against Tarleton State, while California Baptist is idle until its Dec. 11 game at San Diego State. --Field Level MediaChandigarh, Nov 30 (PTI) Inaugurating the 8th Military Literature Festival here, Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria on Saturday called literature the most potent weapon to inspire youngsters towards defence services. Addressing the gathering at the Lake Sports Complex near Sukhna Lake here, Kataria said the valour shown by the sons and daughters of Punjab in different wars serves as a perennial source of motivation for the entire nation. Also Read | Arvind Kejriwal Attacked During Padyatra in Delhi: Security Scare During AAP Leader’s Rally, Man Detained for Throwing Liquid on Former CM in Malviya Nagar (Watch Videos). "The festival not only celebrates India's glorious military heritage, but also underscores the role of military literature in enhancing knowledge and fostering patriotism among citizens," the governor said. Highlighting the increasing participation of women in the armed forces, Kataria said it marked a progressive step towards gender equality and inclusivity in the forces. Also Read | Road Accident: 5 Killed, 15 Injured As Bus Plunges Into 150-Feet-Deep Gorge Near West Bengal-Sikkim Border. He also lauded the efforts of the organisers of the Military Literature Festival (MLF) in encouraging and preparing young boys and girls to join the military, thus contributing significantly to national security and defence. India's strides towards self-reliance in defence under the vision of 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' was another focal point of the governor's address. "India is not only manufacturing state-of-the-art weapons and military equipment, but is also emerging as a key exporter of defence technology to other nations," he said. This, the governor said, reflects India's growing stature as a global power in military innovation, he added. Recalling India's historic achievements under the leadership of A P J Abdul Kalam during the Pokhran nuclear tests, the governor said, "Pokhran was a turning point that showcased India's capability and resolve to the world. It was a moment of national pride that established our nation as a formidable nuclear power. The youth should draw inspiration from such milestones in India's military history." This year's MLF's theme -- 'Wars Under the Nuclear Umbrella' -- aligns with the discussions on contemporary global challenges and India's preparedness for future conflicts. Various panel discussions are lined up on topics like the war in Ukraine, regional instability, and advancements in defence technology, among others. In his address, the governor reiterated the importance of military literature as a tool to inspire future generations. He also urged the organisers to expand the festival's reach to villages across the state, ensuring that stories of bravery, sacrifice, and patriotism resonate in every corner of Punjab. Proposing an annual magazine to preserve and disseminate the event's rich content to schools and colleges, Kataria emphasised the need for retired military officers to engage with the students and share their experiences to inspire them to join the armed forces. "Your life stories, struggles, and achievements can ignite a sense of duty and patriotism in the youth, shaping them as future defenders of our nation," he said. The two-day event also features a grand military equipment exhibition organised by the Western Command, showcasing India's defence capabilities. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
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