February 1, 2007 – Philips recently released the Phillips EP Navigator, an imaging tool for the treatment of complex cardiac rhythm disorders to allow physicians to navigate more easily through the heart during complex procedures.
The EP Navigator combines pre–interventional 3D CT images of a patients’ cardiac anatomy with live X-ray fluoroscopy catheter position information in a single image.
“EP navigator allows me to instantly confirm the position of all catheters with respect to the patient’s anatomy, in real-time, on a single image. It helped us to confirm difficult anatomy on several occasions when fluoroscopy and electro-anatomical mapping were ambiguous. Image registration is user-friendly and allows for easy adjustments when necessary. In complex ablation procedures, it is important to maintain good contact between the ablation catheter and the left atrial wall. EP navigator is an easy to use tool to visualize catheter position and help maintain this contact. The use of the tool will likely allow us to perform procedures with more confidence and efficiency,” said Michael Orlov, M.D., Caritas St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, Boston, MA.