Patent ID: 7137395

Claim:
A balloon catheter device suitable for treating arrhythmias attributable to atrial fibrillation; said balloon catheter device comprising: a shaft having a proximal end and a distal end; a balloon at the distal end of the shaft; wherein the balloon is configured and arranged so as to be in a deflated state when the balloon is being maneuvered and positioned proximal a pulmonary vein proximal the left atrium and is configured and arranged so when the balloon is in an inflated state the balloon is removably secured within the pulmonary vein proximal the left atrium; at least one optical fiber that extends through the shaft and the balloon; and a radial delivery mechanism positioned inside of the balloon, wherein the radial delivery mechanism and at least one optical fiber are arranged so that visible or near-infrared radiation is radially delivered from the optical fiber to a portion of the pulmonary vein proximal the optical fiber, and at a power level sufficient to cause at least one of transmural, continuous and circumferential lesions to be formed in the pulmonary vein and thereby electrically isolating the pulmonary vein from the left atrium.