AFib and Cryoablation
Freezing Out A-Fib
A revolutionary new procedure is stopping atrial fibrillation cold — and saving lives
Coloradan Bob Knudsen will tell you he never expected to see 60. Now, at 64, he’s ready to get his racket back on the tennis courts and his RV back on the road.
Cryoablation for Atrial Fibrillation at St. Anthony Hospital
St. Anthony Hospital cardiologist J. Thomas Svinarich, MD, FACC is one of a select few specialists across the country performing balloon cardiac cryoablation to treat atrial fibrillation, an often life-threatening heart condition. St. Anthony Hospital is the first and only medical center in Colorado and the region to offer the breakthrough procedure and Dr. Svinarich has now completed over 200 cases and is establishing St. Anthony Hospital as an arrythmia managment center for Colorado.
“This procedure has been used in Europe for more than five years, and the U.S. clinical trials were completed nearly two years ago. The fact that St. Anthony Hospital chose to embrace this new technology early allowed us anticipate procedures and obtain necessary training.
At present, the next closest medical center offering it is Phoenix,” explains Dr. Svinarich.
J. Thomas Svinarich, MD, FACC, is the only cardiologist in the region performing cardiac cryoablation to treat atrial fibrillation
Atrial Fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm that affects the upper chambers of the heart, results in blood not being completely pumped out of the upper chambers of the heart, which may cause it to pool and clot. Cryoablation offers a faster, more efficient and more comprehensive treatment alternative to radiofrequency ablation. The balloon-based Arctic Front® cryoablation technology destroys the cardiac tissue through the use of a coolant rather than heat used in radiofrequency ablation. This freezing technology allows the catheter to adhere to the tissue during ablation, allowing for greater catheter stability. More about how cryoablation works.
While St. Anthony Hospital is the first in the region to provide the new procedure, the technology is well proven. To date, more than 15,000 patients in more than 200 centers worldwide have benefited from ArcticFront cryoablation for atrial fibrillation.