![]() The electrophysiologist injects a local anesthetic in both groin sites (this may sting and burn a bit similar to injections at the dentist). These medications make the patient very sleepy but it is not the same as anesthesia The patient is taken to the EP laboratory.īoth groins are prepped with disinfectant and the patient’s whole body is draped with a sterile drape lifted up at the head area for patient comfort.Ĭonscious sedation is administered. The blood pressure, heart rate and blood oxygen values are monitored. Patient arrives (no food that morning) to the cardiac pre-op area. The procedure takes about 2 – 4 hours, more complex cases up to 6 hrs. These procedures are done in the EP laboratory and typically require an overnight stay. There may be other potential complications related to the specific type of ablation procedure. These are rare and occur in less than < 1% of patients: Bleeding and infection at the groin sites, damage to the heart (cardiac tamponade), damage to the electrical system of the heart (AV block, requiring a pacemaker). Success rates: for many common arrhythmias this is > 90%, for atrial fibrillation and other complex arrhythmias 60 – 80%. Catheters are placed into groin veins (and sometimes artery) and advanced into the heart to analyze the heart’s electrical system, induce the abnormal heart rhythm, identify the site responsible for the abnormal heart rhythm and cauterize (ablate) this site thus eliminating the abnormal heart rhythm.
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