St Jude Medical’s MediGuide Enabled Ablation Catheters approved

St Jude Medical has announced that its new MediGuide Enabled Ablation Catheters have received regulatory approval in the US.

The Food and Drug Administration has ratified the new devices for use in the treatment of specific irregular heartbeats, with the first use of the products having recently taken place in Utah.

These catheters take advantage of MediGuide technology and can be visualised using 3D magnetic tracking and navigated in real time on pre-recorded fluoroscopy.

MediGuide technology is the first and only system to potentially reduce the duration of radiation exposure during catheter ablation procedures, with the new devices being the latest addition to the growing MediGuide range.

Frank Callaghan, president of the St Jude Medical cardiovascular and ablation technologies division, said: "The MediGuide Technology is an example of our commitment to providing solutions for expensive and epidemic diseases that can have a direct impact on both physicians and patients."

This comes after the firm announced the appointment of medical technology sector veteran Stefan Widensohler to its board of directors last month.