Study purpose and design

SPHERE Per-AF was a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the Affera™ mapping and ablation system with Sphere-9™ catheter to the CARTO®* navigation and mapping system with THERMOCOOL SMARTTOUCH®* SF (STSF) catheter for the treatment of drug-refractory patients with persistent atrial fibrillation. All 420 primary analysis patients received pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) and additional linear lesions were permitted in order to treat documented macro reentrant tachycardias.



Global multicenter study


3 countries
United States, Israel, Czechia

 

23 sites

 

> 40 operators

  


420 patients treated
in primary analysis

 

< 12 months
to complete enrollment

 



Trial results1

The Sphere-9™ catheter with Affera™ mapping and ablation system displayed proven safety and effectiveness with superior efficiency.

  • 1.4% primary safety events versus 1% when using STSF
  • 74% primary effectiveness rate
  • 80% effectiveness in more than 10 cases1
  • 25+ minutes saved per procedure


Sphere-9™ procedural characteristic superiority over STSF2

  • 25 minutes less skin-to-skin time
  • 29 minutes less energy application time
  • 27 minutes less first to last application time




Sphere-9™ catheter

THERMOCOOL SMARTTOUCH®* SF cathether


Further procedural efficiencies

One | Affera™ catheter

One catheter to map, ablate, and validate in more than 97% of procedures

Two | CARTO®* catheters

Two catheters needed in all procedures: one to map and validate and another to ablate


Watch several SPHERE Per-AF clinical trial investigators discuss the safety, effectiveness, and efficiency outcomes from the trial. 

Safety


Effectiveness


Efficiency


Watch the scientific exchange.

SPHERE Per-AF: Late-breaking data and IDE experience with the Sphere-9™ catheter

Watch Vivek Reddy, MD; Elad Anter, MD; and Khaldoun Tarakji, MD, review results from the SPHERE Per-AF IDE Trial.


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