New Procedure Offers Alternative to Warfarin Therapy

12/12/2018

SCRANTON, Pa. (Dec. 13, 2018) – Cardiologists at Commonwealth Health Heart & Vascular Institute are performing a new procedure that helps to reduce stroke risk in people who have non-valve-related atrial fibrillation while offering them an alternative to warfarin.

The procedure, called left atrial appendage closure device, or LAAC, is beneficial to patients who cannot tolerate warfarin, an anticoagulant. Atrial fibrillation, or AFib, is an irregular, often rapid heart rate that often causes poor blood flow.

In this minimally invasive procedure which is performed under general anesthesia in the cardiac catheterization lab, a parachute-shaped, self-expanding device closes the left atrial appendage where 90 percent of stroke-causing clots originate. The device is inserted through the femoral vein in the leg. The procedure takes about an hour and patients are typically hospitalized for one day.

After the insertion of the device, warfarin treatment is continued until a followup exam shows that the appendage has been closed.