Doctors at Washington University School of Medicine in Missouri, US, are performing a new hybrid procedure using minimally invasive surgical techniques and catheter ablation to treat atrial fibrillation.
Catheter ablation involves threading long, thin tubes through a vein in the groin into the heart, to create scar tissue that isolates the irregular electrical signals and blocks them from spreading through the heart, causing fibrillation.
The new approach gives doctors access to both the inside and outside of the heart simultaneously, helping to completely block the erratic electrical signals that cause atrial fibrillation.
Washington University School of Medicine Surgery assistant professor Hersh Maniar said that the goal is to develop a minimally invasive effective procedure that reduces the risk of stroke and allows more patients to be treated with a single procedure.
