INTRODUCTION Minimally invasive surgical ablation is an emerging alternative method to catheter ablation and the full surgical maze procedure for nonpharmacologic treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). We present a totally thoracoscopic "box lesion" radiofrequency ablation procedure in patients with paroxysmal or persistent AF. MATERIALS AND METHODS From June 2011 to October 2012, 14 patients...

Electrophysiological studies were performed in two patients with documented paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia and dual atrioventricular (AV) nodal pathways as defined by the atrial extra-stimulus technique. Both patients manifested two ranges of A-H intervals (AV nodal conduction times) at critical cycle lengths, reflecting fastand slow-pathway conduction. The occurrence of fastand slow-p...

We retrospectively studied the clinical efficacy and safety of oral flecainide in 38 patients with symptomatic arrhythmias. Patients received 100 to 200 mg daily of flecainide for a mean of 25 months (range 8 to 50 months). All patients had normal cardiac function. Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) was observed in 29 patients (76%). Other forms of arrhythmia included paroxysmal atrial flutte...

BACKGROUND Calcium infusion is used as a pre-treatment before calcium channel blockers to prevent hypotension. Occasional cardioversion with calcium gluconate infusion is seen in patients with paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. Several mechanisms have been suggested for mechanism. Herein we report a case presenting with atrial fibrillation but cardioverted with calcium gluconate infusion,...

Despite the recent advent of and the successful results from catheter ablation, pharmacological therapy is still used by most clinicians as the first line therapy in patients with regular supraventricular tachycardias. Before prescribing an antiarrhythmic agent, documentation of the arrhythmia using a 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) is necessary to identify the type of tachycardia. The ECG diag...

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES Long-term efficacy following cryoballoon ablation of lone paroxysmal atrial fibrillation remains unknown. We describe long-term follow-up results of the single cryoballoon ablation procedure. METHODS Pulmonary vein isolation was performed in 103 patients (72 male; median age 52 years) with symptomatic lone paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. The end-point of this obser...

anotomical boundary of atrioventricular node reentrant tachycardia (avnrt) is composed of fast and slow pathways right atrium in upper turnaround and common distal pathway in lower turnaround. we performed electophsiologic study (eps) in 152 patients and could show the existence of distal common pathway with decremental conduction properties in approximately 40 patients.