New device helps treats AFib at St. Peter's

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A new device is transforming the type of treatment some heart patients with atrial fibrillation receive. Doctors say it's safer to use and improving outcomes for those who have been diagnosed with AFib.

St. Peter's Hospital is the first medical facility in the Capital Region to use the device that was FDA approved in January of 2024.

Addision Keim was the first patient to undergo a cardiac ablation procedure, which removes tissue around the heart to help it beat more regularly. "Walking in here with you, I walked down memory lane," Keim said.

He received the cutting-edge new treatment in November 2024 after being diagnosed with silent AFib. "I couldn't tell my heart was mis-beating just by feeling or taking my pulse," Keim recalled.

While he had no outward symptoms his cardiologist discovered he had irregular heartbeats that affected his blood flow. The condition can lead to major complications like a blood clot, stroke or even heart failure.

At age 74, Keim became the first patient in the Capital Region to undergo a procedure with brand new technology. Dr. Robert Phang, the Director of the Cardiac Electrophysiology Lab at St. Peter's Hospital, explained, "We are the only center in the region that has this technology."

Dr. Phang showed NEWS10 Boston Scientific's Farapulse system. "The high voltage energy from the pulse field makes little holes in the cell tissue of left atrium to destroy it," Dr. Phang explained. "This technology is tremendously safe."

For years, as Dr. Phang, explained the field used thermal heat to destroy tissue in order to treat AFib. "The big difference is it is high voltage energy delivered through the tip of a catheter."

The end piece is flexible and can switch its shape between a basket-like structure or something resembling a flat flower, which makes it easier for Dr. Phang to get to the parts of the heart that need help with blocking abnormal signals.

"The catheter has to be making good contact with left atrium to make good ablation legions," he added.

Keim said, "This procedure helped me to maintain the thought that I can have a complete recovery."