Patent ID: 6638278
Filing Date: 2003-10-28
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
A catheter for ablating intracardiac tissue comprising:a body portion; a distal end portion having a distal tip and accommodating at least one ablation electrode adapted to produce a substantially continuous, elongated, lesion in said tissue when energized with radio frequency (RLF) energy; a distal steering mechanism which controls the curvature of a region of said distal end portion near said distal tip, wherein said distal steering mechanism is adapted to deflect said distal tip from a first, generally straight, configuration into a second, hook-shaped, configuration; a proximal steering mechanism which controls the curvature of a proximal region of said distal end portion, wherein said proximal steering mechanism is adapted to deflect substantially the entire length of said distal end portion wherein the distal end portion includes a pre-shaped, curved region at a predetermined location along said at least one ablation electrode; and an intermediate steering mechanism which controls the curvature of a region of said distal end portion along said at least one ablation electrode.