title: Exclusion of the left atrial appendage with the TigerPaw II system: a word of caution.
abstract: Exclusion of the left atrial appendage (LAA) may significantly reduce the incidence of stroke associated with atrial fibrillation (AF), since this is the main thrombus source. LAA closure is becoming a therapeutic target for preventing AF-related stroke, attracting much interest in recent years. Different devices are available to provide LAA exclusion during cardiac surgery. We describe herein our experience with the recently introduced TigerPaw II system for LAA exclusion, and report a high prevalence of device malfunction. Design improvements may address these issues and increase safety for new technological devices designed for surgical LAA closure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Guillermo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ventosa-Fernandez
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Eduard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Quintana
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Castellá
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain dpereda@clinic.ub.es.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pereda
mesh_terms: D020517:Atrial Appendage / Q000601:surgery*; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000150:complications*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D019736:Prostheses and Implants; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D020521:Stroke / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017792:Surgical Stapling; D013923:Thromboembolism / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*
keywords: Atrial fibrillation; Left atrial appendage; Stroke; Surgical occlusion