Cure for blood clots in the left atrium

[Adrienne]

I was watching the news at noon, and they had a medical report on this new gadget which is a bit like a closed sieve which can be inserted by catheter into that little pocket in the left atrium where clots form when a person has atrial fibrillation. I think it is still in the experimental stage, but the woman that had it could stop taking her Coumadin (she apparantly had bleeding problems with Coumadin). Anyhow, I found this very interesting for the future.

 

[ottagal]

Very interesting indeed. Thanks for that.

 

[Greg a]

It was a CTV report

link to the VIDEO
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Health/20101226/new-heart-procedure-101226/

CTV.ca News Staff

Date: Sun. Dec. 26 2010 9:57 PM ET

Canadian doctors are testing a simple "plug" to help treat atrial fibrillation, a condition that affects about 250,000 patients in this country and often can't be cured with medication.

Atrial fibrillation can be a frightening condition as the heart doesn't beat normally, causing fainting and chest pain.

The irregular heartbeat causes blood to pool and thicken in a chamber around the heart, seriously boosting the chance of clots and a stroke. Atrial fibrillation is responsible for about 15 per cent of all eschemic strokes.

About five per cent of Canadians who are older than 70 suffer from atrial fibrillation -- an estimated 250,000 people. If patients undergo the new procedure, they can avoid open-heart surgery.

Most patients with atrial fibrillation take drugs that thin their blood, to stop clots from forming. But they cause dangerous bleeding for patients like Ellaine Painter. She's 82-years old and has lived with the risk of stroke for years.

"It's a big risk of stroke," Painter said.

Painter was recently treated with a new device that is being tested in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. The procedure is called "catheter implantation of the new Amplatzer Cardiac Plug prosthesis," and is still in the clinical trial stage, though showing promising results.

Doctors thread a tiny cable into the heart and into the area where the blood is pooling. They then open the plug. This procedure stop clots from forming.

Dr. Eric Horlick, at Toronto's Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, is one of the cardiologists testing the device.

"I think that this new technology is very exciting," Horlick told CTV News. "We know that stroke is devastating, and we know that atrial fibrillation is responsible for 15 per cent of all the strokes we see in Canada.

"This is a huge public health problem and it's something that we potentially have a solution for."

His colleague, Dr. Mark Osten, says more data is needed, through randomized clinical trials, before the device can be adopted as the "the standard of care."

The procedure has been used in Europe regularly since 2008.

It was also announced last year that the Montreal Heart Institute (MH) would be used as a training headquarters for U.S. doctors.

In late 2009, a team from the MHI did its first implantation of the prosthesis, and the successful procedure was credited to the shared efforts of the MHI, the Institut de cardiologie et de pneumologie de Quebec, the Toronto General Hospital and St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver. The team performed three operations.

For Painter, meanwhile, the choice to undergo the procedure was an easy one.

"It worked out very well for me," she said. "Very well."

With a report by Avis Favaro, CTV News Medical Specialist

 

[Missy]

This is interesting.

 

[Jkm7]

We're so lucky to live in a time with such advancements in treatments and procedures for ailing hearts.
Thanks for posting this. It's very interesting.

 

[Bina]

I saw this on the news here also, really cool stuff.
More info here:
http://www.sjm.com/aga-medical

 

[Adrienne]

Thanks Greg for finding the link with the text of the report.

 

[Greg a]

Thanks Greg for finding the link with the text of the report.

I had seen it on Sunday nights 11pm national newscast and meant to post then but had a "Greg" moment and totaly forgot BRAIN FREEZE SETTING IN

 

[Greg a]

I saw this on the news here also, really cool stuff.
More info here:
http://www.sjm.com/aga-medical

I followed your link and got to some VERY interesting videos thanks Bima

http://www.amplatzer.com/products/VascularPlugFamily/tabid/813/Default.aspx

 

[Lily]

Interesting; thanks