better experimental methods
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the rapid, irregular contraction of an upper chamber of the heart. One treatment for AF is to create lesions on the outer surface of the affected atrium with a surgically placed microwave probe. The scarring that occurs as the lesions heal blocks the electro-muscular waves that carry contractions across the surface of the heart.
When this project started, any change in the microwave system (the generator or the applied part) had to be tested by creating lesions in excised or in vivo tissue. This was a slow, expensive and frustratingly inconsistent process. The challenge was to enable faster and less expensive development of improved devices.
Create the understanding and tools needed to characterize the microwave system and to accurately and consistently measure the size of the resulting lesions. Elements included:
A calorimeter to accurately measure the microwave output of the surgical devices.
Metrics to capture the fundamental energy transfer function of the surgical devices.
An accurate, well controlled bench top system for testing with excised tissue.
Analysis of the generated data.
A faster, less expensive development process based on a clear understanding of how delivered power, cycle time and tissue thickness affect the size of the lesions formed.