How It Works
The heat energy is transmitted through the catheters. It burns or
"erases," the electrical cells that are believed to be
causing the arrhythmia. Once these cells are damaged, they are no
longer capable of conduction and therefore should be unable to produce arrhythmias.
The most common method is to perform intentional AV blocking by
ablating the AV node and supplementing it with a pacemaker.
Before the procedure
You prepare for an ablation in the same way you would prepare for
the EPS
procedure. You'll undergo a series of tests, including a blood test
and an electrocardiogram. Please do not eat or drink anything for
eight hours prior to the procedure. Also, you should consult with the
electrophysiologist or arrhythmia nurse five days before the procedure
to determine whether or not you'll need to discontinue any medications
you may be taking. Once you and your physician have discussed the
procedure and specific risks and you've had any questions answered,
you'll be required to sign an informed consent form.
During the procedure
The ablation procedure is done in conjunction with an EPS. The
catheter ablation usually adds one to two hours to the procedure.
During the electrophysiology procedure, we will reproduce your fast
heart rhythm and attempt to identify the specific area in your heart
that is initiating it.
Once we've located the area, we'll "ablate" it by placing
an electrode catheter into the area and sending radiofrequency energy
(heat) to the arrhythmia focus. We'll continue to apply this heat
until that tissue is rendered unable to initiate a fast rhythm. After
we have ablated the area, we'll wait 30 minutes and then attempt to
reproduce the fast heart rhythm again. If we're unable to produce a
fast heart rhythm, we'll consider the ablation procedure successful.
After the procedure
After the procedure, we'll remove the catheters and take you to a
monitored unit for observation. In most cases, we'll want to observe
your heart monitor overnight. If there are no concerns in the morning,
you can go home.
You may experience slight chest pain for a few days following the procedure. If you experience such a symptom, please notify us. Many patients experience skipped heart beats for several months following catheter ablation. If you have a recurrence of your fast heart rhythm, you should notify your regular physician or contact us at 650-723-7111.
