Innovative catheters for cardiac
arrhythmia reduce risks and save time
Our heart beats for many things and sometimes it beats incorrectly. When this happens, it needs to be brought back into the right rhythm. One method to do this is catheter ablation of the heart: a sophisticated, minimally invasive procedure in which a very thin catheter is used to obliterate abnormal tissue using intense heat. As an innovative medical technology supplier, Heraeus Medevio has not only succeeded in contributing to the development of a pioneering catheter with precious metal electrodes but has also been able to respond to a surprisingly high demand by quickly ramping up production.
Heart palpitations, strokes, unconsciousness: the symptoms of cardiac arrhythmia make it impossible for millions of people worldwide to live a normal life. Medication can help, but it has to be taken continuously and has serious side effects. Many sufferers are therefore waiting for treatment in the form of ablation. A catheter is inserted into the heart to localize the tissue responsible for the disturbed rhythm. The abnormal tissue is then specifically burned away using a high-frequency current to stop the arrhythmia.
Complex catheter head for greater safety
Technology has made enormous progress in recent years. The microcatheter in the market, for which Heraeus Medevio is supplying an important component set for the catheter head as a highlight, is emblematic of this. Heraeus Medevio has succeeded in producing complex components with a diameter of just 2.33 millimeters using micro technologies. These include special sensors and more than 60 micro holes that enable the necessary cooling and rinsing in this procedure. "Microelectrodes and additional sensors give doctors more feedback, which means safer treatment for patients," explains Christiane Leitold, Global Head of Portfolio Management at Heraeus Medevio. "This also shortens the procedure time by a good 30 percent and greatly increases the likelihood that the treatment can be successfully completed with just one procedure instead of several." Arguments that are convincing more and more doctors and have led to an unexpectedly sharp rise in the number of orders.
This was also a challenge for electrode supplier Heraus Medevio, which, according to Leitold, demanded special commitment: "By working closely with our customer, we recognized the needs and then did everything we could to reach the goals and meet the demand." This was achieved impressively: instead of the originally planned 200,000 catheters, 500,000 catheters are currently produced annually for patients around the world. This means that production capacity has increased by more than 200% annually over the past four years.
Rapid response to market developments
This was made possible by the acquisition of new machines to increase production capacity, diligent process management and continuous improvements efforts, combined with the finding, hiring and training of more than 100 additional employees - all in a very short period of time. This was done in close coordination with the customer and the various units involved at Heraeus. The precious metal rods for the production of the catheter components come from the operating company Heraeus Precious Metals. To ramp up production, the various departments and the two sites in Hanau and Switzerland at Heraeus Medevio worked closely together across all geographical boundaries - including Operations, Sales, Engineering, Quality, Portfolio Management and Customer Support.
This success is based on a long history: "We always do everything we can to have the latest technologies in-house in order to be able to supply such innovative products. We constantly analyze market opportunities intensively, coordinate closely with our customers and invest in new machines at an early stage," says Leitold, explaining the Heraeus approach, which also worked very well in the case of cardiac catheters. Originally, Heraeus Medevio was mainly active in the pacemaker market and not in the field of electrophysiology.
The deliberate thinking outside the box was recognized both internally and externally: Medevio received the Scale-up Award 2023 from Heraeus and was also rewarded with a Supplier award from our customer. Looking forward, Heraeus Medevio is already at the start with its own electrode developments for the innovative pulse field ablation against cardiac arrhythmia, which does not require thermal energy.
