AF News Flash: Heart surgeons are on the case! An important trial comparing catheter ablation to surgical ablation for AF was reported at last month’s AHA meeting. The surgical ablation arm of the FAST trial used the newly-approved Atricure Synergy Ablation System. And onward goes the collegial tussle between heart doctors and heart surgeons. Before […]
Category: AF ablation
The chart reads, “here for 6-month AF ablation follow-up.†My eyes track first to the palpitations box. None. Then the ECG. Regular. Good. That’s a relief. Sweet! Knowing he was free of symptoms and in regular rhythm, I bounced into the room. “How are you?” He looked well. Observe. Always observing, us doctors. I just got […]
Here is our AHA poster. In powerpoint version: Gender-specific results of AF Ablation in a Private Practice Setting And in PDF: Gender-specific results of AF ablation in a Private Practice Setting-PDF The actual poster: (Click to enlarge.) I would like to thank my co-authors. Without their volunteerism and can-do ethos, we would simply not know […]
Hey all. I put together an AF-treatment power-point presentation for a group of primary care doctors, ER doctors and others this morning. The title of the talk is 2011 Update in the treatment of AF. The focus of the presentation will be five aspects of AF treatment: The best tool to treat AF A better […]
There is more bad news for the newest atrial fibrillation ablation tool–Medtronic’s Ablation Frontiers catheter-ablation system. After an overly positive press release last month, I wrote about the system’s safety issues. Namely, that although effective, the multi-electrode PVAC circular ablation catheter was associated with an increased risk of stroke. Previous studies on the catheter showed […]
Here is the pdf version: 2011 AF and Stroke Talk (Norton) And the power point version: 2011 AF and Stroke Talk (Norton) Overview: —We will start with the accepted evidence base for warfarin. —Then move to dispel four myths about using blood-thinners in AF: Myth 1: Rhythm-control strategies prevent stroke. Myth 2: Running the INR […]
The news wires for atrial fibrillation were abuzz this afternoon. The vigor and speed with which health news travels is striking. Since 2.6 million Americans live with AF, my guess is that many are looking at the release of the Medtronic-sponsored TTOP-AF trial with anticipation. Here is a link to the press release. The trial […]
There’s very little in Cardiology that isn’t rapidly changing these days. Treating AF exemplifies this trend. At least my approach to AF has evolved steeply over the past year. Amazingly so, really. For instance, I choose blood-thinners in a different way. Call it a more European perspective. My threshold to discuss and recommend AF ablation […]
Doctors that treat atrial fibrillation (AF) are getting close to celebrating the one-year anniversary of having a substitute for warfarin. As an early adopter of the novel new blood-thinner, I would like to share some (almost) one year-old observations on dabigatran (Pradaxa). First, the science behind dabigatran is stellar. The landmark RE-LY trial studied 18,000 […]
I have said that the best tool for treating atrial fibrillation (AF) is education. I still strongly believe this, perhaps more then ever. AF presents itself to people in so many different ways–from no symptoms to incapacitation. Likewise, the treatments for AF range from simple reassurance and lifestyle changes, to taking a medicine, and on […]
Catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation continues to ascend into the mainstream. The treasure of eliminating AF [symptoms] without taking pills stokes the demand for a fix. People like fixes. Technological advances in catheters and mapping systems along with the formation of neural pathways (skills) in ablationists have fueled the growth of AF ablation. The epidemic […]