Innovating Cardiac Solutions: How Field Medical Is Redefining VT Treatment
Michael Browers
Director @ Integer Holdings | MBA, Product Management | Medtech Cartoonist and Blogger | Creator of “The Unusual Side Effects” Comic | Author | Medtech Industry Insights at PulseOnDevices.com
Welcome back to another edition of Sunday Scrubs, where I usually share some lighthearted moments from my comic strip The Unusual Side Effects. This week, however, I’m shifting gears to focus on an exciting figure in the medical world: Steven Mickelsen . For those who don’t know, Dr. Mickelsen is a pioneer in the field of pulsed field ablation (PFA) for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. He’s also the founder of Field Medical , a company pushing the boundaries of the treatment of ventricular tachycardia (VT) through novel ablation technologies.
To mark the occasion, I created a special cartoon of Dr. Mickelsen, which I originally shared ahead of the HRS conference. In it, I gave him a guitar—a nod to his history playing in a rock band before diving into the world of cardiology. I got a kick out of his gracious response on LinkedIn: “Perfect likeness, the only giveaway is that the subject is not playing a 1960 gold sparkle Jazzmaster.” His humility and sense of humor are just a glimpse of why his work is both groundbreaking and inspiring.
Dr. Mickelsen and the Future of VT Treatment
At the core of Dr. Mickelsen's work is Field Medical’s mission to address unmet needs in the treatment of ventricular arrhythmias, including ventricular tachycardia (VT) and premature ventricular contractions (PVCs). As Dr. Mickelsen shared during his presentation at LSI earlier this year, these are potentially life-threatening conditions, affecting millions globally. Yet, the existing therapies, especially catheter ablation, remain highly underutilized despite their curative potential.
In both the U.S. and Europe, an estimated six million people meet the criteria for catheter ablation, but only around 100,000 procedures are performed annually. One of the key challenges is that current ablation techniques, such as radiofrequency (RF) ablation, were primarily designed for the atria and face significant limitations when applied to the more complex structure of the ventricles.
That’s where Field Medical comes in.
Dr. Mickelsen and his team are advancing PFA technology, which represents a paradigm shift in electrophysiology. Unlike traditional thermal energy sources like RF, PFA uses electric fields to ablate tissue, allowing for precise and minimally invasive treatment. The innovation is particularly vital for treating VT because the ventricle’s thick, rugated tissue can be challenging to reach with current tools.
Field Medical’s novel catheter is designed specifically for the ventricle, offering greater precision and predictability. In preclinical studies, the PFA catheter was able to achieve full-thickness lesions in the left ventricle with only a few applications, reducing procedure times to under an hour—compared to the hours often needed with standard RF ablation. This not only enhances the efficacy of the procedure but also improves patient safety by minimizing time under anesthesia and reducing recovery times.
An Invitation to Join the Conversation at the VT Symposium
If you’re attending the 19th Annual VT Symposium in Brooklyn next month, you won’t want to miss Field Medical’s special event. Join Dr. Steven Mickelsen and other thought leaders as they discuss the transformative potential of PFA in treating ventricular arrhythmias.
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Event Details:
Space is limited, RSVP by October 5th to [email protected]
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Experimental Medicine , Faculty of Medicine, UBC, Vancouver | Medical Content Writing
1 个月"How did Steven’s work influence your artistic approach? Who inspires you to explore different creative directions?" https://lnkd.in/guWiXGVC
Medical Device R&D Engineering
2 个月Would like to see that gold sparkle Jazzmaster
Medical Device Executive, Physician Innovator, & Cardiac Electrophysiologist at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla CA
2 个月Thank you for the flattering words. In 2011 I started shifting my attention from cardiac autonomics to improving catheter ablation techniques and technology. Farapulse (Iowa Approach) was the first fruit of my intellectual pivot. Despite the fact that PFA had been around for decades and several very prominent groups were investigating the potential of PFA over thermal approaches, my spark appears to have been the one that triggered the revelation unfolding before us today. I credit the fact that I chose not to remain a sheltered academic physician but instead started a company. Transformative innovation is a team sport in tackling important needs in medical care requires partnership with the private sector. My current mission is to improve outcomes and accessibility to patient suffering from ventricular arrhythmias.