Three ‘Firsts’ in Heart Procedures Happening at Baton Rouge General in Same Week

BATON ROUGE, La. – This week, three different heart procedures are taking place for the first time at Baton Rouge General (BRG) -- implanting a new type of pacemaker, correcting atrial fibrillation in a different way, and fixing a blocked artery that has already had a stent placed. Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in Louisiana. All three procedures will take place in BRG’s state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization lab, or “cath lab.”

The first dual-chamber leadless pacemaker in Louisiana will be implanted at BRG on Wednesday, Aug. 14. The groundbreaking system -- called the AVEIR™ DR by Abbott -- was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in June 2023, providing a new minimally invasive option to treat the nearly 80% of people who require pacing in two chambers of the heart. The two shiny, quarter-inch-wide cylinders that are less than 1.5 inches long do their job to steady an irregular or delayed heartbeat. When these small devices detect an irregular or delayed heartbeat, they deliver tiny zaps of electricity to nudge the pump into proper behavior. They then provide synchronized or coordinated cardiac pacing between two leadless pacemakers based on the person’s clinical needs, in essence “talking” to each other to transmit information back and forth. Robert Drennan, MD, an electrophysiologist with Cardiovascular Institute of the South (CIS), will perform this first-of-its-kind procedure.

See how it works.

Doctors at BRG are also using the newest technology to address atrial fibrillation (AFib), a type of irregular or often very fast heartbeat and the leading cause of stroke. This new approach called pulse field ablation -- FARAPULSE™ by Boston Scientific -- uses ultra-fast electrical impulses to target heart tissue and break up the electrical signals that cause irregular heartbeats without heat or cold. This type of ablation destroys only the heart cells that cause the irregularity, avoiding possible damage to the esophagus, nerves and healthy tissue. This procedure was performed first by electrophysiologists Mark Pollet, MD with Baton Rouge Cardiology Center; and Robert Drennan, MD and Ryan Gullat, MD, with CIS.

Broll footage of FARAPULSE for download

Also this week, a new type of coronary drug-coated balloon called AGENT was used at BRG to treat patients who have already had a stent placed but have recurring narrowing or blockage in the artery. Called in-stent restenosis, treatment options for this condition have typically been limited and often unsuccessful. Garland Green, MD, an interventional cardiologist at CIS, was the first to use this drug-coated balloon.

For more information on comprehensive heart care at BRG, click here.

About Baton Rouge General Medical Center
Baton Rouge General Medical Center is the area’s first community hospital with over 600 licensed beds between three campuses. Baton Rouge General opened its doors in 1900, and has provided the Greater Baton Rouge community with high-quality healthcare for generations. An accredited teaching hospital since 1991, Baton Rouge General is affiliated with several medical school programs, and offers other medical education programs, including a School of Nursing, School of Radiologic Technology, Family Medicine Residency Program, Internal Medicine Residency Program, and Sports Medicine Fellowship Program. For more information, visit BRGeneral.org, find us on Facebook at Facebook.com/BatonRougeGeneral and follow us on Twitter @BRGeneral and Instagram @batonrougegeneral.

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