Atrial flutter ablation is associated with a high rate of acute procedural success and symptom improvement. The relationship between ablation and other clinical outcomes has been limited to small studies primarily conducted at academic centers. We sought to determine if catheter ablation of atrial flutter is associated with reductions in healthcare utilization, atrial fibrillation, or stroke in...

BACKGROUND Data on the comparative value of the circumferential pulmonary vein and the segmental pulmonary vein ablation for interventional treatment of atrial fibrillation are limited. We hypothesized that the circumferential pulmonary vein ablation approach was superior to the segmental pulmonary vein ablation approach. METHODS AND RESULTS One hundred patients with highly symptomatic atrial...

BACKGROUND The characteristics of patients undergoing atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation and subsequent outcomes in community practice are not well described. METHODS AND RESULTS Using the Outcomes Registry for Better Informed Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation (ORBIT-AF), we investigated the prevalence and impact of catheter ablation of AF. Among 9935 patients enrolled, 5.3% had previous AF abl...

Thermal tissue ablation is an interventional procedure increasingly being used for treatment of diverse medical conditions. Microwave ablation is emerging as an attractive modality for thermal therapy of large soft tissue targets in short periods of time, making it particularly suitable for ablation of hepatic and other tumors. Theoretical models of the ablation process are a powerful tool for ...

In the past decade, catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) has evolved as one of the most frequently performed procedures in tertiary arrhythmia centers worldwide. With the observation of the actively firing trigger originating from within the pulmonary veins (PVs), ablation strategies have focused at least in paroxysmal AF patients on complete isolation of the PVs. Several different abl...

Mitral isthmus ablation forms part of the electrophysiologist's armoury in the catheter ablation treatment of atrial fibrillation. It is well recognised however, that mitral isthmus ablation is technically challenging and incomplete ablation may be pro-arrhythmic, leading some to question its role. This article first reviews the evidence for the use of adjunctive mitral isthmus ablation and its...

Laser ablation of Nickel, Copper, Molybdenum, Indium, Tungsten and Gold by short ultraviolet laser pulses (0.5 ps, 248 nm) in vacuum is reported for the first time. For Nickel and Indium, ablation is also studied in air to demonstrate the influence of the ambient atmosphere. Metal ablation in air is significantly less efficient than in vacuum due to redeposition of ablated material. The ablatio...

BACKGROUND Endo-venous laser or microwave ablation is a minimally invasive surgery for treating varicose veins of lower limbs. AIM The aim of our study was to determine whether endovenous microwave ablation of the greater saphenous vein was associated with better effectiveness and less complications than the endovenous laser ablation. MATERIALS AND METHODS From July 2008 to June 2011, 259 c...

BACKGROUND Remote heating of metal located near a radiofrequency ablation source has been previously demonstrated. Therefore, ablation of cardiac tissue treated with metallic nanoparticles may improve local radiofrequency heating and lead to larger ablation lesions. We sought to evaluate the effect of magnetic nanoparticles on tissue sensitivity to radiofrequency energy. METHODS AND RESULTS A...

BACKGROUND Failure to achieve properly localized, permanent tissue destruction is a common cause of arrhythmia recurrence after cardiac ablation. Current methods of assessing lesion size and location during cardiac radiofrequency ablation are unreliable or not suited for repeated assessment during the procedure. MRI thermography could be used to delineate permanent ablation lesions because tiss...