Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital is the first in Arizona to employ Thrombolex’s BASHIR catheter in life-saving procedures to resolve patients’ pulmonary embolisms, a condition where a blood clot travels to the lungs and blocks one or more pulmonary arteries.

With the aid of this new medical technology, Dr. Sundeep Shenoy, MD, a board-certified cardiologist at Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital and his team treated a pulmonary embolism from a patient earlier this month, eliminating a blood clot that posed life threatening consequences.

“We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to bring new and advanced medical treatments to our patients who experience pulmonary embolisms and other cardiovascular diagnosis. Thomblolex’s BASHIR catheter assisted our team to not only treat the patient’s blood clot but also drastically reduced their stay at Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital, allowing the patient to rest, heal, and continue their recovery at home,” said Dr. Shenoy. 

The recovery time for a patient with blood clots in the lungs could last three to five days in the hospital & often the recovery takes weeks. Dr. Shenoy’s patient recovered at Carondelet St. Joseph’s Hospital for one day and was discharged for further healing to the comfort of their home.

The BASHIR catheters resolve thrombus through pharmacochemical lysis (PML). Targeted thrombolysis are delivered from the expandable infusion basket directly into the clot enabling the immediate restoring of blood flow and optimal resolution of thrombus. This results in a highly effective treatment with ease of placement, shorter procedure time, and superior safety. 

Several catheter-based techniques are available for managing pulmonary embolism, and the BASHIR catheter adds another option to our treatment arsenal. When patients present with pulmonary embolism, we can choose between medical management and, if necessary, interventional treatments to alleviate their symptoms. Our team takes a collaborative approach, utilizing the appropriate tools tailored to each patient's needs to effectively address their blood clots. 

“Catheter-based pulmonary embolism management should be simple, safe, and effective. The BASHIR™ Endovascular Catheter, with its unique and innovative design, exceeds expectations in those three categories.” said Dr. Shenoy.

Monica Vargas, Chief Executive Officer of Carondelet Health Network shared, “In our 145 years in Tucson and southern Arizona, Carondelet Health Network has and continues to invest in groundbreaking technology to aid our physicians in their work to provide the best medical care to our patients. Improving the health and wellness of our patients is and has always been our priority.”