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[Catheter ablation] |
Catheter ablation is a method that permanently cures an irregular heart beat. The method involves the insertion of a fine tube called a catheter via a blood vessel into the heart and the cauterization of cardiac muscle via application of a high- frequency electric current from the tip on the end of the catheter. |
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The tip of the ablation catheter has a 4-8 mm electrode from which a high- frequency electric current is sent to the cardiac muscle, which results in a burn of approximately 4-8 mm in diameter and 4-8 mm in depth. |
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Two mechanisms are primarily responsible for an irregular heart beat: abnormal electric excitation traveling in a radial pattern from one point of the cardiac muscle (spreading from a point as shown in the illustration on the left) and abnormal excitation circulating within the heart (circulating as shown in the illustration on the right). |
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Catheter ablation is a method that permanently corrects an irregular heart beat by clarifying its mechanism based on the situation: the source of the problem is cauterized if the abnormal excitation is a radial pattern, whereas the pathway is cauterized if the abnormal excitation is a circulatory pattern. |
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