A method includes, inserting into an organ of a patient, a catheter having an expandable distal-end assembly, which is coupled to a shaft and includes multiple splines, at least a given spline among the multiple splines includes an electrode that is being placed in contact with tissue of the organ. At least a size of a section of the electrode in contact with the tissue, is controlled by moving a tube over at least a portion of the expandable distal-end assembly.

Systems and methods for electroporation are provided. An electroporation system includes a catheter including a plurality of electrodes, and a pulse generator coupled to the catheter, the pulse generator configured to generate a waveform to be delivered using at least one of the plurality of electrodes. The waveform includes a first pulse having a first polarity, a first pulse amplitude, and a first pulse width, and a second pulse having a second polarity, a second pulse amplitude, and a second pulse width, wherein the first and second pulses are separated by an interpulse delay, and wherein at least one of i) the first pulse amplitude is different than the second pulse amplitude and ii) the first pulse width is different than the second pulse width.

A novel catheter is disclosed comprising an electrode array that is capable of switching between a sensing configuration for sensing electrical signals of biological tissue and an ablation configuration for delivery of ablation energy at a region of interest. Irrigation ports are interlaced within the electrode array to vent irrigant during an ablation procedure to; prevent excessive heating, charring of tissue, coagulation of blood, and allow for efficient delivery of ablation therapy for maximum therapy efficacy. The novel catheter includes a plurality of splines with linear portions wherein the electrodes of the electrode array are disposed. The splines are connected by connectors which include one or more bends capable of storing potential energy when the bends are elastically deformed, enabling collapse and expansion of the catheter in a sheath. Software logic associated with this catheter analyzes sensing signals to diagnose critical regions of the biological rhythm disorder, and enables directional guidance to move the catheter to critical regions for therapy.

Devices, systems, and methods for catheterization through angionavigation, cardionavigation, or brain navigation to diagnose or treat diseased areas through direct imaging using tracking, such as radiofrequency, infrared, or ultrasound tracking, of the catheter through the patient's vascular anatomy. A steerable catheter with six degrees of freedom having at least a camera and fiber optic bundle, and one or more active or passive electromagnetic tracking sensors located on the catheter is guided through the vascular system under direct imaging. The direct imaging can be assisted with at least one of MRA imaging, CT angiography imaging, or 3DRA imaging as the roadmap acquired prior to or during 3D stereoangiovision. The system comprises RF transceivers to provide positioning information from the sensors, a processor executing navigation software to fuse the tracking information from the tracking sensors with the imaging roadmap, and a display to display the location of the catheter on the roadmap.

Disclosed herein are systems and methods for locating and identifying nerves innervating the wall of arteries such as the renal artery. The present invention identifies areas on vessel walls that are innervated with nerves; provides indication on whether energy is delivered accurately to a targeted nerve; and provides immediate post-procedural assessment of the effect of energy delivered to the nerve. The methods includes evaluating a change in physiological parameters after energy is delivered to an arterial wall; and determining the type of nerve that the energy was directed to (sympathetic or parasympathetic or none) based on the evaluated results. The system includes at least a device for delivering energy to the wall of blood vessel; sensors for detecting physiological signals from a subject; and indicators to display results obtained using said method. Also provided are catheters for performing the mapping and ablating functions.

Pulmonary vein isolation catheters and associated devices, systems, and methods are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, a pulmonary vein isolation catheter includes a tip section having an expandable portion and a deployment member. The expandable portion includes a plurality of mesh electrode panels that are electrically insulated from one another. The expandable portion is mechanically coupled to (i) the deployment member at a distalmost portion of the tip section and (ii) a distal end portion of a catheter shaft. The expandable portion is expandable and compressible via proximal and distal movement, respectively, of the deployment member. In some embodiments, the expandable portion in a deployed state is pear- or onion-shaped and includes a nose portion and/or an active body portion. The nose portion can be insulated and/or configured to fit within a pulmonary vein and position the active body portion against tissue about the ostium of the pulmonary vein.

The present invention provides a method for treating diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), associated condition or disorder thereof, or symptoms thereof suffered by a subject such as a mammal (e.g. a human patient or a pet), comprising (1) placing one or more electrodes within a target blood vessel of the subject and against the target blood vessel wall, wherein the target blood vessel includes the celiac artery and/or a segment of the abdominal aorta terminated at its junction with the celiac artery; (2) adhering a surface electrode on an external surface such as skin of the subject; and (3) releasing a therapeutically effective amount of radiofrequency energy through the one or more electrodes to nearby tissues, so as to increase the temperature of the nearby tissues and induce a thermal alteration of the nearby tissues.

Transducer-based systems and methods may be configured to display a graphical representation of a transducer-based device, the graphical representation including graphical elements corresponding to transducers of the transducer-based device, and also including between graphical elements respectively associated with a set of the transducers and respectively associated with a region of space between the transducers of the transducer-based device. Selection of graphical elements and/or between graphical elements can cause activation of the set of transducers associated with the selected elements. Transducer activation characteristics, such as initiation time, activation duration, activation sequence, and energy delivery characteristics, can vary based on numerous factors. Visual characteristics of graphical elements and between graphical elements can change based on an activation-status of the corresponding transducers. Activation requests for a set of transducers can be denied if it is determined that a transducer in the set of transducers is unacceptable for activation.

An intra-cardiac mapping system is based on locating the ports through which blood flows in or out the heart chambers. For many procedures, such as ablation to cure atrial fibrillation, locating the pulmonary veins and the mitral valve accurately allows to perform a Maze procedure. The location of the ports and valves is based on using the convective cooling effect of the blood flow. The mapping can be performed by a catheter-deployed expandable net or a scanning catheter. The same net or catheter can also perform the ablation procedure.

A device for applying radiofrequency energy for sphincter treatment comprising a flexible outer tube, an expandable basket having a plurality of arms movable from a collapsed position to an expanded position, and a plurality of electrodes movable with respect to the arms from a retracted position to an extended position. An advancer is slidably disposed within the outer tube to move the plurality of electrodes to the extended position. An actuator moves the advancer from a first position to a second position to advance the plurality of electrodes. An aspiration tube extends within the outer tube. An assembly includes an aspiration disabler having a first position to enable aspiration from a distal portion of the aspiration tube to a proximal portion and a second position to disable aspiration.