Patent ID: 7371232

Claim:
A catheter comprising: an elongated flexible tubular catheter body having an axis and proximal and distal ends; an ablation assembly at the distal end of the tubular body having, a preformed generally circular curve that is generally transverse to the axis of the catheter body, the ablation assembly comprising a flexible tubing and carrying a bulb-shaped tip electrode at its distal end, the tip electrode having an exposed region, wherein at least a portion of the exposed region has a diameter greater than the outer diameter of the flexible tubing of the ablation assembly; a safety wire having proximal and distal ends for securing the tip electrode, wherein the distal end of the safety wire is anchored to the tip electrode, and the proximal end of the safety wire is fixedly anchored to a stationary location in a control handle at the proximal end of the catheter body; and an electrode lead wire extending through the catheter body and into the ablation assembly and having a distal end connected to the tip electrode.