The multi-electrode ablation catheter PVAC is used to simplify pulmonary vein isolation in patients undergoing ablation of atrial fibrillation. The use of the PVAC in cases of atrial tachycardia has not been reported before. In the present report, we present the use of the PVAC for the ablation of a left atrial tachycardia following pulmonary vein isolation. This case may suggest that the PVAC ...

A number of complications have been associated with ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF), including arterial thrombo-embolism, pulmonary vein stenosis, phrenic nerve injury, and pericardial tamponade.1–4 Esophageal injury, manifested as esophageal perforation or left atrial-esophageal fistula, has been reported after catheter or surgical ablation of AF using radiofrequency (RF) current5–8 and c...

The catheter maze procedure for the treatment of chronic atrial fibrillation requires the creation of transmural, continuous linear atrial lesions. Attempts to drag a conventional radiofrequency ablation catheter across the atria in clinical as well as experimental studies have resulted in discontinuous lesions. Continuous linear lesions have been most difficult to create in trabeculated atrial...

BACKGROUND Atrial fibrillation is common among older persons. Catheter ablation is increasingly used in patients for whom medical therapy has failed. METHODS AND RESULTS We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries ≥65 years of age who underwent catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation between July 1, 2007, and December 31, 2009. The main outcome me...

Atrial fibrillation is a significant public health burden, with clinically, epidemiologically and economically significant repercussions. In the last decade, catheter ablation has provided an improvement in morbidity and quality of life, significantly reducing long-term healthcare costs and avoiding recurrences compared with drug therapy. Despite recent progress in techniques, current catheter ...

BACKGROUND Atrial tachycardia (AT) that develops after ablation of atrial fibrillation often poses a more difficult clinical situation than the index arrhythmia. This study details the use of an impedance-based electroanatomic mapping system (Ensite NavX) in concert with a specialized multielectrode mapping catheter for rapid, high-density atrial mapping. In this study, this activation mapping ...

OBJECTIVE To review the effectiveness, safety, and costing of ablation methods to manage atrial fibrillation (AF). The ablation methods reviewed were catheter ablation and surgical ablation. CLINICAL NEED Atrial fibrillation is characterized by an irregular, usually rapid, heart rate that limits the ability of the atria to pump blood effectively to the ventricles. Atrial fibrillation can be a...

Two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) is an emerging technology for the evaluation of left atrial (LA) function. This technique is feasible, overcomes the limitations of tissue Doppler imaging and has been demonstrated to accurately assess atrial function during the different phases of the cardiac cycle (1). Atrial structural and electrical remodeling are the hallmarks of a...

Surgical arrhythmia ablation techniques can achieve epicardial transmural lesions but require a combination of surgical access and endoscopic approaches. We sought to adapt a surgical ablation catheter to a percutaneous subxyphoid approach. The EpiSense nContact (Epi) is a surgical ablation catheter that contains a 3-cm ablation coil, an open irrigation system, and a suction mechanism to mainta...

Radiofrequency ablation using a percutaneous catheter-based approach is widely used to treat supraventricular arrhythmias. Atrial fibrillation frequently arises from an abnormal focus at or near the junction of the pulmonary veins and the left atrium, thus leading to the feasibility of more focused ablation techniques directed at these structures. Catheter-based ablation, using both radiofreque...