MITRAL VALVE REPAIR

As many as 20% of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting
(CABG) and approximately 50% undergoing MV surgery such as mitral valve repair and/or replacement also have some form of arrhythmia.
Conversely, a number of patients who did not originally have an
arrhythmia develop one as a result of undergoing a cardiac procedure.
These patients' arrhythmias can be treated as secondary outcomes, while
the patients are primarily treated for mitral valve disease or coronary vessel obstruction.

Routinely used in more than 125 surgical centers around the world, the
SurgiFrost system uses a malleable, single-use surgical cryoprobe to
treat cardiac arrhythmias while a patient is undergoing a primary
cardiac surgical procedure such as coronary artery bypass grafting
(CABG) or mitral valve (MV) repair and/or replacement. CryoCath
estimates that there are more than 375,000 patients annually worldwide
who are candidates for a combined arrhythmia ablation with the CABG or
MV procedure. SurgiFrost may ultimately be used on a primary basis for
certain surgical procedures such as the stand-alone treatment of AF.

SurgiFrost is used to treat atrial fibrillation during mitral valve
repair. Surgeons use the system during a well-established procedure
(the Maze procedure) that is safe and effective. The use of the Maze
procedure adds just a little more time to the operation. Treating
atrial fibrillation in this manner has a positive impact on the
patient’s lifestyle and reduces the potential for stroke. It also
reduces the patient’s need for anti-arrhythmic and anti-coagulant
medications as well as the side effects associated with them.