MercyOne is the first in Iowa to use a new, groundbreaking atrial fibrillation treatment

MercyOne is excited to announce that on Wednesday, November 12, Mark Shen, MD, performed the first surgery in Iowa using a revolutionary new system for treating atrial fibrillation (AFib) at MercyOne Genesis Davenport Medical Center. 

Dr. Shen, a board-certified cardiac electrophysiologist and cardiologist with Cardiovascular Medicine, PLLC, utilized the Affera Mapping and Ablation System with the Sphere-9 Catheter for the procedure. Dr. Shen specializes in treating patients with heart rhythm disorders.

Atrial fibrillation (AFib) is a progressive disease that occurs when the heart's upper chambers beat out of rhythm. As a result, blood is not pumped efficiently to the rest of the body. AFib is the most common atrial arrhythmia, affecting nearly 60 million people worldwide, and is associated with serious complications, including heart failure, stroke and increased risk of death. 

“The Sphere-9 catheter enables physicians to map, ablate, and validate using a single device, enhancing the safety of ablation procedures for our patients,” said Dr. Shen. “This technology will improve and speed up our ability to treat patients suffering from Afib.” 

In clinical trials, patients treated with the Sphere-9 catheter reported improvements in both mental and physical quality of life. The technology was recently approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

The Affera Mapping and Ablation System with Sphere-9 Catheter is an all-in-one high-density (HD) mapping and dual-energy ablation (pulsed field (PF) and radiofrequency (RF)) catheter for the treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation (AFib) and the ablation of cavotricuspid isthmus-dependent atrial flutter using RF energy. 

The Affera Mapping and Ablation System enables physicians to customize treatment based on a patient’s needs during an ablation procedure, utilizing various energy sources and mapping capabilities to correct rapid, abnormal heart rhythms. With the increasing number of patients with AFib and the recent U.S. FDA approval, the Affera system has the potential to provide a life-changing solution for people with AFib.