New device for treating atrial fibrillation

A new high-tech catheter device can improve outcomes of patients treated for atrial fibrillation, the most common irregular heartbeat. The treatment, called catheter ablation, involves burning selected spots of tissue inside the heart with the tip of a catheter. This eliminates the sources of errant electrical signals that are triggering the atrial fibrillation. More than 2 million Americans have atrial fibrillation, also known as a-fib. There are about 160,000 new cases each year. The number is...