New Technique Cures Atrial Fibrillation

A new technique that targets and isolates the triggers on pulmonary veins leading to the heart has been shown to preserve the heart's natural electrical circuitry and to eliminate the need for a pacemaker or medication.

The technique was developed by a team of cardiac rhythm specialists at the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, USA) and was reported at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiologists in Atlanta (GA, USA). Rather than blocking the main electrical road to the heart, the new technique is more specific in targeting the actual triggers of fibrillation. The electrophysiologists infuse drugs that promote the firing of "hot spots” on the pulmonary veins and identify them by using sophisticated electrical recording techniques. Once these triggers are identified, a catheter-based ablation procedure isolates the abnormal fibers that cause them. No pacemaker or medication is needed.

This is in contrast to the traditional ablation procedure for this arrhythmia, which delivers an electrical charge that permanently blocks the electrical connection that transmits the impulse from the atria to the heart's lower ventricles. A pacemaker is then required to maintain an adequate heart rate and patients require blood-thinning medication.

"We've been working on this problem for the last five years, and we're excited by the effectiveness and low complication rates associated with our current technique,” said Francis E. Marchlinski, M.D., director of cardiac electrophysiology for the University of Pennsylvania Health System.




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