Heart arrhythmias are conditions that cause your heart to beat fast, slow, or irregularly. Often, you can have symptoms of palpitations, shortness of breath, or lightheadedness when these arrhythmias occur. Depending on the arrhythmia you have and the severity of your symptoms, cardiac ablation is an excellent treatment option.
A catheter ablation is a minimally invasive, non-surgical procedure that is performed by an electrophysiologist, who is a cardiologist that specializes in the electrical system of the heart. Because heart arrhythmias are due to heart cells firing inappropriate electrical impulses or abnormal electrical circuits that were created, the catheter ablation’s purpose is to create scar tissue over the misfiring cells or abnormal circuits. This scar tissue then makes those cells or circuits electrically inactive, allowing normal electrical conduction to occur throughout the heart.
Several heart arrhythmias may benefit from cardiac ablation, including:
Catheter ablation is performed in the hospital under general anesthesia. Catheters are inserted into veins in your groin and then thread up through those veins into your heart. Once the catheters are in your heart, electrical mapping takes place to identify the areas of the heart that are causing the arrhythmia. Ablation is then performed, which is the creation of scar tissue over the problem areas to make them electrically inactive. This can be done with radiofrequency, cryo, alcohol, pulse field, or other types of ablation. After the ablation, you will be observed to ensure there is no recurrence of any arrhythmia. The catheters are then removed and you are woken up from anesthesia, at which time you will be monitored for a few hours before being discharged home if all is well.
Heart of Dixie Cardiology is a specialty subset of the Revere Health group. We have over a dozen cardiology providers throughout our locations to give you the specialized heart care that you deserve.
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