Yesterday I had cryoballoon AF Ablation under a local anesthetic at 10am and was eating lunch by 1pm. I was kept under observation for a few hours and released once the wound in the groin was sufficiently healed, plus I had several ekgs and blood pressure readings to confirm all was well. It was fast and painless after the initial injection to administer the local anesthetic. I was able to chat with the team throughout the procedure, never even felt more than a little drowsy.
What has surprised me is the reaction of several folks I know who have told me they would want a general anesthetic when catheters are being inserted into the heart, and punching through the wall dividing the top 2 chambers to get at the left chamber.
Given the option of local or general which would you prefer to have?
https://www.heartrhythmdoc.com/arrhythmia-treatment-options/cryoablation/
What has surprised me is the reaction of several folks I know who have told me they would want a general anesthetic when catheters are being inserted into the heart, and punching through the wall dividing the top 2 chambers to get at the left chamber.
Given the option of local or general which would you prefer to have?
https://www.heartrhythmdoc.com/arrhythmia-treatment-options/cryoablation/
Heart doctors began using heat-based ablation to treat AF more than a decade ago, but new scientific evidence supports the use of cold therapy for this condition as well. The FDA approved the first cardiac cryoablation catheter in December of 2010.
An electrophysiologist (EP doctor) performs cryoablation to disable the heart cells that cause AF and restore the heart to a normal rhythm. Cryoablation is a minimally invasive procedure in which the EP doctor uses a thin flexible tube, known as a balloon catheter, to locate and freeze this heart tissue. Cryoablation is an appropriate treatment for atrial fibrillation when medications and other AF treatments do not restore the heart to a normal rhythm.