Ablation catheters

Abstract

The present invention relates generally to multifunctional catheters for performing ablation procedures, and more particularly to ablation catheters utilized in the treatment of atrial fibrillation and other cardiac disorders. The present invention eliminates many of the problems associated with previous ablation catheters by providing an ablation treatment not dependent upon continuous lesions.

1 . A tissue ablation device comprising:
 an elongate catheter body, wherein said elongate catheter body comprises a proximal end and a distal end, and   an array of ablation elements mounted to a plurality of arms that extend radially from a top portion of a center post extending from the distal end of said catheter body, the array of ablation elements being movable between an expanded configuration and a contracted configuration, the ablation elements being substantially coplanar in the expanded configuration, each array of ablation elements includes at least two sets of at least two ablation elements, wherein the at least two sets are separated by a first gap distance and the at least two ablation elements are separated by a second gap distance smaller than the first gap distance; and   wherein the array of ablation elements are configured to contact a tissue region and produce a shaped ablation lesion within the tissue region.   
     
     
         2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of arms has a length between 0.1 and 100 mm. 
     
     
         3 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the array of ablation elements defines a surface area between 0.03 square millimeters and 314 square centimeters. 
     
     
         4 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein said array of ablation elements is configured to create radial lesions in body tissue. 
     
     
         5 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising a handle; wherein said handle is attached to said proximal end of said elongate catheter body. 
     
     
         6 . The device of  claim 5 , wherein said handle is configured to move said array of ablation elements between the expanded and contracted configurations. 
     
     
         7 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein said device further comprises an energy source configured to permit emission of energy from said array of ablation elements. 
     
     
         8 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein moving the top portion of the center post away from the distal end of the elongate catheter body moves the umbrella tip body to the contracted configuration. 
     
     
         9 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein moving the top portion of the center post towards the distal end of the elongate catheter body moves the umbrella tip body to the expanded configuration. 
     
     
         10 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein moving the top portion of the center post away from the distal end of the elongate catheter body moves the array of ablation elements to the contracted configuration. 
     
     
         11 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein moving the top portion of the center post towards the distal end of the elongate catheter body the array of ablation elements to the expanded configuration.