Abstract:
Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a medical procedure used for treatment of cardiac disorders such as arrhythmia or destruction of cancerous tumors in lung, kidney, breast, liver or any other dysfunctional tissue diseases. RFA is also used for treatment of varicose veins, severe chronic pain as well as many other medical uses.

RFA Side Effects and Complications:
Although radiofrequency ablation is a relatively safe procedure, serious complications and side effects can occur. Potential side effects include tissue charring and blood coagulation, blood clot and stroke, cardiac perforation, pulmonary vein stenosis, etc.

Solution:
The novel design of the “RFA Thermal Imaging” is based on the medical grade thermal imaging (thermography) infrared camera and associated software. This system allows for real-time monitoring and analysis during the ablation process. The data collected by the camera is fed back to the programmable generator to calculate the optimal adjustment and control of the RF energy. The dedicated image processing software is critical to ensure tissue contact quality and lesion transmurality, as well as controlling tissue depth, length and volume. Figure 1 depicts the design concept consisting of a programmable RF generator, a catheter resting on the cardiac tissue, the thermal imaging camera and thermal imaging and analysis software.

Benefits:
✔Precise tissue monitoring of temperature, and lesion depth, length and volume
✔Accurate real-time electrode feedback for tissue temperature distribution and contact quality
✔Reduced ablation time and lower delivered RF energy resulting in improved patient safety and post-operative recovery