Left Atrial Appendage Closure

The left atrial appendage (LAA) of the heart is a common location where clots form in atrial fibrillation (AFib) patients that then embolism and cause a stroke. Closing off the LAA either surgically, with a clip or via transcatheter LAA closure device, closes the opening to the LAA to prevent clots from forming or embolizing. The clots are the reason why AFib patients need to be on anticoagulants. LAA occlusion (LAAO) enables patients to stop taking anticoagulation drugs. LAAO has been a rapidly growing segment of structural heart procedures since the approval of the first device, the Watchman, in 2015. Procedures are performed by electrophysiologists, interventional cardiologist or cardiac surgeons.

Medtronic gains key approval for LAA exclusion device
The FDA-cleared device from Medtronic, which arrives pre-loaded on a single-use delivery system, is now set to launch in Europe.
Next-generation Watchman enters trial in 2026 as LAAO volume grows
The next-generation Watchman device is designed to better seal off complex LAA anatomy in a variety of LAA shapes and sizes.
Medtech company raises $32M for foam-based LAAO device
New Hampshire-based Conformal Medical plans on using the funds to enroll more patients into an ongoing clinical trial.
FDA says Watchman access systems may increase risk of air embolism—17 deaths reported
Because of this risk, which has been associated with 120 serious injuries, Boston Scientific is updating the instructions for use of several Watchman access systems.
New LAAO guidelines: 6 key takeaways for interventional cardiologists and electrophysiologists
SCAI and HRS have collaborated on new guidelines designed to help clinicians make the safest, smartest treatment decisions possible.

Medtronic Penditure Left Atrial Appendage (LAA) Exclusion System

Medtronic gains key approval for LAA exclusion device

The FDA-cleared device from Medtronic, which arrives pre-loaded on a single-use delivery system, is now set to launch in Europe.

The next generation Watchman device is designed to better seal off complex LAA anatomy to prevent strokes in atrial fibrillation patients. It uses an optimized architecture to fill gaps and adapt to the unique characteristics of each patient's appendage, which come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.

Next-generation Watchman enters trial in 2026 as LAAO volume grows

The next-generation Watchman device is designed to better seal off complex LAA anatomy in a variety of LAA shapes and sizes.

Medtech company raises $32M for foam-based LAAO device

New Hampshire-based Conformal Medical plans on using the funds to enroll more patients into an ongoing clinical trial.

FDA says Watchman access systems may increase risk of air embolism—17 deaths reported

Because of this risk, which has been associated with 120 serious injuries, Boston Scientific is updating the instructions for use of several Watchman access systems.

Newsweek ranked the 50 best heart hospitals in the world

New LAAO guidelines: 6 key takeaways for interventional cardiologists and electrophysiologists

SCAI and HRS have collaborated on new guidelines designed to help clinicians make the safest, smartest treatment decisions possible.

Alexander Kolomaya, MD, a cardiology resident at the University of Utah, presented a study on U.S. national trends in left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) volume and open payments from vendors to operators at the American Heart Association 2024 meeting.

Vendor payments not responsible for rising popularity of LAAO procedures

Consulting fees and other vendor payments do not appear to be directly influencing U.S. physicians to implant more Watchman devices. Researcher Alexander Kolomaya, MD, discussed his team's findings on this topic.

Amplatzer Amulet Left Atrial Appendage Occluder (LAAO) from Abbott

Abbott’s Amulet LAAO device linked to long-term safety, effectiveness

Researchers explored five-year data from more than 1,800 patients with nonvalvular AFib who underwent LAAO with Abbott's Amulet or Boston Scientific's Watchman 2.5.

D. Scott Lim, MD, medical director of the Advanced Cardiac Valve Center, and co-director of the Adult Congenital Heart Disease Center at University of Virginia (UVA) Health in Charlottesville, and an associate professor at the University British Columbia, explains how intracardiac echo (ICE) is increasingly being used to help guide structural heart procedures.

Key details on the use of ICE to guide structural heart procedures

Scott Lim, MD, details his experience using intracardiac echo to help guide structural heart procedures with or without traditional TEE. One key benefit of ICE, he explained, is its ability to overcome imaging challenges posed by prior cardiac surgeries.