Method and apparatus for preventing atrial fibrillation
View Patent ↗A method and apparatus for reducing the likelihood of post operative atrial fibrillation by cooling specific nerves in the heart. In an exemplary method, a semi-rigid probe having a distal portion capable of cooling tissue to temperatures below freezing, is placed on tissue proximate cardiac nerves to temporarily or permanently inhibit signal conduction in the nerves.
1. A method of preventing postoperative transient arrhythmia, comprising the steps of:
performing a surgical procedure on a heart; and
postoperatively cooling selected cardiac nerves to a temperature below −30 degrees Celsius until nerve signal conduction in the selected cardiac nerves it at least temporarily inhibited.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected cardiac nerves include nerves associated with a posterior surface of the left atrium of the heart.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected cardiac nerves include sympathetic nerves proximate the Ligament of Marshall.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of cooling has a duration of 15 to 120 seconds.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of cooling is accomplished at a temperature of approximately −80 degrees Celsius.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected cardiac nerves are approached endocardially.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected cardiac nerves are approached epicardially.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected cardiac nerves are stunned so that nerve signal conduction is temporarily inhibited.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected cardiac nerves are ablated so that nerve signal conduction is permanently inhibited.
10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of cold mapping cardiac tissue prior to the step of cooling.
11. A method of preventing postoperative transient arrhythmia, comprising the steps of:
performing a surgical procedure on a heart;
epicardially approaching a selected region of the heart using a cooling device postoperatively;
placing the cooling device on the surface portion of the heart; and
using the cooling device to cool selected cardiac nerves to a temperature below −30 degrees Celsius.