With the introduction of the AtriCure® bipolar clamp, lesions could now be created in seconds rather than the minutes previously required to create unipolar lesions that were rarely transmural.1 AtriCure’s patented ablation system maintains consistent tissue compression, continuously measures conductance, and titrates the exact amount of energy to achieve transmurality – no more, no less.

Consistent Compression

Good tissue contact leads to good electrical contact. The Isolator’s parallel, stainless steel jaws provide a rigid backbone to create consistent tissue pressure along the entire ablation line, regardless of anatomical tissue variations.

Continuous Conductance

Conductance is a measure of the ability of an object to conduct an electrical current. The Isolator intelligent software algorithm measures tissue conductance 50 times per second, averaging 1,000 measurements per ablation. And, when tissue conductance has reached a low threshold where electrical impulses are blocked, a full-thickness lesion is completed. AtriCure's closed-looped algorithm senses this low conductance and stops the ablation.

Targeted Energy

Energy needs to remain confined to a specific area while protecting adjacent tissues, structures, and blood. In the AtriCure Isolator products, precise linear gold electrodes are mounted in each jaw and surrounded by a super-insulating material to contain the flow of electrical current within the narrow jaws.

1. Mokadam, et al. A Prospective Multicenter Trial of Bipolar Radiofrequency Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation: Early Results. Ann Thorac Surg 2004;78:1665-1670.