Heart 1998;79:534-535 ( June )
Editorial
Importance and implications of the occurrence of AV block following radiofrequency ablation
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
Radiofrequency (RF) catheter ablation is now a widely used
technique for treating cardiac arrhythmias
it is considered as routine
first line treatment for most arrhythmias. Although its effectiveness
is very high it has a low but definite risk of
complications.1,2 Complete atrioventricular (AV) block is
one of the more common complications. Its importance is raised as many
patients with this arrhythmia are young and, should they have AV block,
they would need permanent cardiac pacing for a long expected lifetime. AV block may be caused by the delivery of RF energy in the septal region, close to the compact AV node or proximal His bundle in patients
with mid or anteroseptal accessory pathways, or in patients with
atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT). Septal localisation of the accessory pathways is quite rare and the risk of AV
block is balanced by the potential risk of life threatening arrhythmias
that patients with
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