Catheter ablation of left-sided atrioventricular accessory pathways through the coronary sinus by direct-current shock may be complicated by rupture and thrombosis of the coronary sinus and injury to the coronary arteries. This study examined short and long-term effects of radiofrequency catheter ablation of the coronary sinus in 20 closed-chest dogs to determine whether this technique is feasi...

Catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) has gained significant attention during the last decade. Owing to the increase in patients undergoing AF ablation with only moderate long-term outcomes, there is considerable interest in developing new tools to assist the electrophysiologist during the procedure. Catheter contact force (CF) has been known to be an important determinant of radiofreq...

A 74-year-old male suffering from congestive heart failure with atrial tachycardia (AT) with 2 : 1 atrioventricular conduction was admitted to our hospital. After the therapy with diuretics and β-blocker, his rapid AT was still sustained. He took the catheter ablation for his AT. Postpacing interval mapping from entrainment and noncontact mapping system revealed the mechanism of his AT, origina...

The vein of Marshall (VOM) is widely known as a pathogenesis of atrial fibrillation (AF). To eliminate the triggers of AF, the Marshall potential can be ablated both from the endocardium with radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and from the epicardium with ethanol injection. This is a case report of successful catheter ablation from the endocardium to visualize the electrically isolated area of the VOM.

Radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFA) has evolved as an effective treatment modality in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). However, complication rates associated with RFA of AF have been cited in the range of 3.5 - 5% with the majority consisting of cardiac tamponade, vascular complications, and thromboembolic phenomena. In this review, the complications of AF ablation will be discussed a...

A case of a fistula running from the pulmonary vein to the esophagus after a staged hybrid procedure combining total thoracoscopic ablation and percutaneous radiofrequency catheter ablation has not been reported previously. We describe such a case in a 37-year-old man who was successfully treated by surgery.

To determine if catheter ablation of the atrioventricular (AV) junction with radiofrequency energy can induce chronic incomplete (first- and second-degree) AV block to avoid the need for a permanent pacemaker, 20 closed-chest dogs were studied. Group 1 (10 dogs) received radiofrequency energy (750 kHz) with a fixed power setting (5 or 10 W) while increasing the pulse duration from 10 to 50 seco...

Radiofrequency (RF) catheter ablation became first-line therapy for supraventricular tachycardia in patients with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome1–5 and atrioventricular (AV) nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT)6–11 in the early 1990s. High ablation success ( 90%) and low complication rates ( 5%) were found by numerous investigators.1–11 This article describes these ablation techniques with a foc...

Radiofrequency catheter ablation is an increasingly adopted strategy for difficult-to-manage patients with atrial fibrillation. Echocardiography is the key imaging modality to assess left atrialstructure and function. In this review, the role of echocardiography in atrial fibrillation ablationbefore, during and after ablation is discussed. Currently established roles of echocardiography inpatie...

R adiofiequency ablation of atrioventricular (AV) nodal reentrant tachycardia has been shown to be an effective and safe treatment and to have a significant cost advantage over other forms of therapy.* In studies reported to date, patients were hospitalized for 2 to 10 days after slow pathway ablation to monitor for possible complications or a recurrence of the tachycardia.*s3 A previous study ...