once an arrhythmia is mapped, physicians often turn to ablation to treat it. this involves inserting a catheter into blood vessels to the heart and using targeted areas of radiofrequency to generate intense heat. this creates scars, which block abnormal electrical impulses and restore regular heartbeats.the size of the tip of a pencil eraser, the qdot micro™ catheter was designed to deliver high-power, temperature-controlled ablation in a short amount of time, allowing for more efficient ablation. in one study, 86% patients treated with the qdot micro catheter didn’t see their symptoms recur for 12 months—an improvement over other previous biosense webster catheters.currently in clinical development is the new pulsed field ablation (pfa) technology, which is designed to treat recurrent paroxysmal afib. the pfa uses a controlled electric field to ablate cardiac tissue, which can potentially reduce the risk of damage to the esophagus, veins and nerves pertinent to other ablation catheters.innovations in afib diagnosis and treatment help reduce procedure times and patient risks, says dr. porter. patients don’t need as much anesthesia, see less radiation exposure and often return to their daily routines the following day.“it’s very gratifying to be able to give people their lives back,” says dr. porter.it’s something foster can relate to.after several months of taking medication and still experiencing symptoms, in february 2020 foster’s cardiologist referred her to an electrophysiologist, who recommended catheter ablation.“the idea of having a heart procedure was scary, but the reality is that it’s life-changing,” says foster. “my afib was gone after i had the ablation procedure.”while she still visits her electrophysiologist once a year for a checkup, foster says she hasn’t felt symptoms in the three years since the procedure. “it’s as if i never had it.”