Contact force analysis by steerable sheath
Baseline patient characteristics were similar in both sheath groups
except for significantly higher BMI (p = 0.01) and females (p = 0.03) in
the SureFlex group than Agilis (Table 1). A total of 1354 lesions were
analyzed in the Agilis group and 1803 lesions in the SureFlex group.
There was no significant difference in the mean CF between the Agilis
sheath and SureFlex sheath at the overall procedure level, as well as
around each PV (Table 2). However, CF variability was 13% lower with
the SureFlex sheath over the entire procedure compared to Agilis sheath
(p = 0.043; Figure 3A). Further analysis showed a trend of 13-14% lower
CF variability in the left and right superior pulmonary veins with the
SureFlex sheath than Agilis sheath (significant at the α = 0.1 level;
Figure 3B).