Name: Burke Barrett
New title: CEO, Pulse Biosciences
Previous title: CEO, Cardiofocus
Pulse Biosciences has appointed Burke Barrett as CEO. The appointment sees the former CEO Kevin Danahy become chief commercial officer to focus on the launch of a pulsed field ablation (PFA) device.
California-based Pulse has developed technology that delivers nanosecond-duration pulses of electrical energy. Applied to atrial fibrillation (AFib), Pulse says the technology can improve on existing surgical thermal technologies by delivering faster ablations through thicker tissue. The company also sees potential safety advantages.
Pulse received 510(k) clearance for its Cellfx electrode system in March. The clearance is part of a set of milestones that Pulse is working toward to unlock the surgical AFib market and later the larger catheter opportunities targeted by PFA leaders Boston Scientific and Medtronic.
The board has restructured the leadership team for the next stage of the plan. Barrett spent around 18 years at Cardiofocus, including three years as CEO, and worked on projects including the premarket approval of an ablation device. Barrett left the company in January 2023, and he has now replaced Danahy as CEO.
Danahy took the top job at Pulse in September 2022 but has moved to the chief commercial officer position. Danahy will now be responsible for leading the pilot launch of the recently cleared Cellfx percutaneous electrode system.
Mitchell Levinson, chief strategy officer at Pulse, said in a May earnings call that it “usually takes several weeks, sometimes longer” for physicians who want to evaluate a technology to get approval from their institutions.
“We've got multiple [key opinion leaders] currently working through that approval process. We expect our Cellfx percutaneous system is going to be used in a number of prominent hospitals and clinics by the end of this year,” Levinson said.
While Danahy oversees the launch, Barrett will lead other efforts such as the push to bring a cardiac ablation clamp to market. Pulse filed for 510(k) clearance of the clamp on the strength of preclinical studies in January, but the Food and Drug Administration requested human data. Pulse is setting up a study in the Netherlands.
