Catheter ablation for supraventricular tachycardia

Article Abstract:

The brain is responsible for making the heartbeat go faster or slower, but the intricate mechanical coordination necessary for an individual heartbeat is managed exclusively within the heart itself. Some people are born with structural abnormalities within their hearts which provide alternative routes for electrical stimulation. Since the heart relies on electrical stimulation to control the contraction of the heart muscle, these ''accessory'' pathways for electrical stimulation can profoundly upset the normal function of the heart. Sometimes, these pathways may provide a route for the electrical stimulation to circle back and start a second round of contraction before the heart is ready; the result is an abnormally rapid beating of the heart, a condition called tachycardia. Since this form of tachycardia results from the ''reentry'' of electrical stimulation into the node which controls the contraction of the ventricles of the heart, this form of tachycardia is called supraventricular tachycardia. If the abnormal pathway for stimulation can be inhibited by drugs, the stimulation can no longer circle back to the atrioventricular node (a location between the atrium and the ventricle where the electrical impulse originates) and the disorder is controlled. If drugs do not work, the accessory pathway may be physically destroyed; this has traditionally been accomplished with electrical current. Not surprisingly, destroying heart tissue with a jolt of high voltage is a dangerous procedure. In the June 6, 1991 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, two separate research groups describe the use of radiofrequency current to accomplish this same task. An electrode within a long catheter is slid into the femoral artery in the leg and up into the heart. The electrode is placed as close as possible to the accessory pathway tissue, which is then destroyed with the application of high-frequency electrical current. The use of radio frequency current seems to reduce the risk of complications in this procedure and is quite effective in curing the supraventricular tachycardias. As with any new procedure, more data must be gathered, and long-term health and survival data must be accumulated on the patients. These preliminary findings are very encouraging nonetheless, and it seems likely that radiofrequency destruction of accessory pathway tissue in the heart will become the treatment of choice for supraventricular tachycardia syndromes. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Usage, Surgery, Tachycardia, Radio, Supraventricular tachycardia, Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, editorial

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Treatment of coronary in-stent restenosis with a paclitaxel-coated balloon catheter

Article Abstract:

A study was conducted to assess the efficacy and safety of using a paclitaxel-coated balloon in the treatment of coronary in-stent restenosis, which is hampered by a high incidence of recurrent in-stent restenosis. The results obtained prove that the usage of paclitaxel-coated balloon highly reduces the incidence of restenosis, as its inhibition by local drug delivery does not require stent implantation and hence sustains drug release at the site of injury.

Drug therapy, Dosage and administration, Paclitaxel, Coronary stenosis, Disease/Disorder overview

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Catheter Ablation for cardiac arrhythmias

Article Abstract:

Cardiac arrhythmias are caused by abnormalities in impulse formation or conduction that lead to slow or fast, regular or irregular heart rhythms. The study is important because it indicates that a Wolff-Parkinson-White electrocardiogram in an asymptomatic child is not necessarily a benign finding and that a procedure can be performed to prevent an adverse outcome.

Science & research, Research, Analysis, Arrhythmia, Catheter ablation

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