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NORTHEAST GEORGIA HEART CENTER IN COLLABORATION WITH NORTHEAST GEORGIA MEDICAL CENTER FIRST IN GEORGIA TO PERFORM A ROBOTIC-ASSISTED CORONARY ANGIOPLASTY
Northeast Georgia Heart Center Participates in CorPath PRECISE Trial
Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the most common form of heart disease and the leading cause of death in America. One of the most common treatments for CAD is a PCI procedure, commonly known as angioplasty. Traditionally, PCI procedures are performed by an interventional cardiologist in a catheterization laboratory (cath lab). The physician visualizes the coronary arteries by utilizing moving X-ray images, or angiography. Miniature equipment (as small as 14/10,000 of an inch in diameter) is advanced through blockages within the heart arteries and small balloons and stents (tiny metal coils) are used to open blocked arteries. 'With our aging population at increased risk for CAD it has driven the demand for innovative, new technologies in the cath lab. However, since the start of my career, the basics of angioplasty have not changed,' said Mark Leimbach, MD, FSCAI, co-principal investigator, interventional cardiologist at Northeast Georgia Heart Center, Chief of Cardiology at Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 'It was very exciting to participate in a procedure with the enhanced precision control of the robotic system'. There are several potential benefits of robotic angioplasty. Today, a traditional PCI procedure exposes the staff performing the procedure to significant amounts of radiation exposure. The use of robotics may reduce this exposure. Eventually, with the ever increasing complexity of PCI procedures in the not too distant future, the use of a robot could provide an extra set of extremely dependable, non-fatiguing hands for longer more intricate procedures. 'This technology shows great promise to be adapted in the day to day practice in the cath lab. Moving equipment in and out of a patient's coronary arteries has been rather easy,' said Prad Tummala, MD, FACC, FSCAI, co-principal investigator, interventional cardiologist at Northeast Georgia Heart Center, Medical Director of the Ronnie Green Heart Center at Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 'With an aging population, technical advances, and physician experience leading the way to performing more and more complex interventions, robotic assistance may significantly reduce radiation exposure and operator fatigue.' The CorPath 200 System provides precise, robotic-assisted placement of coronary guidewires, angioplasty balloons and stents from an ergonomically optimized interventional cockpit. The operator is protected from radiation exposure in a lead shielded cockpit. The comfortable seated position provides enhanced visualization of the angiography screens, while reducing fatigue and minimizing head, neck and back pain. 'We are excited about being one of seven angioplasty programs in the country to start robotic angioplasty', said Jeff Marshall MD, FACC, FSCAI, principle investigator, interventional cardiologist at Northeast Georgia Heart Center, and Medical Director of Cardiac Cath Labs at Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 'In the future this may assist interventional cardiologists in doing more complex procedures. This first trial will show proof of concept and patient safety. This is an exciting time in interventional cardiology.' 'We are excited to begin the CorPath PRECISE trial,' said Tom Edwards, Director of Heart & Vascular Services at Northeast Georgia Medical Center. 'We believe that improving precision of PCI procedures and the ergonomic conditions of the cath lab will ultimately improve patient care and reduce radiation exposure for both the patient and physician. Vascular robotics at Northeast Georgia Medical Center emphasizes our continuous commitment to delivering state of the art technology to our patients and clinical community.' The trial is a prospective, single-arm, multi-center, non-randomized study, which will enroll up to 200 patients at leading medical centers across the country. Northeast Georgia Heart Center Northeast Georgia Heart Center is the premiere Cardiology practice in Northeast Georgia, with 19 Board Certified Cardiologists practicing in the areas of General Cardiology; Heart Failure/Transplant; Electrophysiology and Invasive & Interventional Cardiology. Northeast Georgia Medical Center is one of six hospitals which The Heart Center physicians provide cardiology consult.
Northeast Georgia Medical Center Northeast Georgia Medical Center is Georgia's #1 heart hospital for the sixth consecutive year (2006 - 2011) according to HealthGrades®. In fact, NGMC is one of only five hospitals in the nation to rank #1 in all four cardiac categories measured HealthGrades. Learn more at www.nghs.com/heart.
About Corindus Corindus (http://www.corindus.com/) is the global technology leader in robotic-assisted percutaneous coronary interventions. The Company's CorPath® 200 System is the first medical device that offers interventional cardiologists complete PCI procedure control from an interventional cockpit. The CorPath open-platform technology and intellectual property will enable Corindus to address other segments of the vascular market, including peripheral, neuro and structural heart applications
NOTE: The CorPath 200 System is an investigational device and limited by federal law to investigational use only. |
GAINESVILLE, GA. - MAY 18, 2011 - Northeast Georgia Heart Center (NGHC) in collaboration with Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) announced today it completed the first robotic-assisted coronary angioplasty in the State of Georgia as part of the CorPath PRECISE trial. The sponsored clinical trial will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the CorPath 200 System in delivering and manipulating coronary guidewires and stents in percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) procedures. NGHC research department is one of only seven sites in the world evaluating this new technology.
