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Heart Disease  (Expert Forum)
 | 
How Can EP Specialists be so Precise?
This forum is for questions and support regarding heart issues such as: Angina, Angioplasty, Arrhythmia, Bypass Surgery, Cardiomyopathy, Coronary Artery Disease, Defibrillator, Heart Attack, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Mitral Valve Prolapse, Pacemaker, PAD, Stenosis, Stress Tests.

How Can EP Specialists be so Precise?

by CCF CARDIO MD DLB, Mar 22, 1999 12:00AM

  I am considering having an ablation for svt.  I was just wondering how the EP Specialists can be so precise so as not to ablate the av node.  Can they actually see the node to know that they might be dangerously close?  Can you recommend a good hospital/specialist in the Los Angeles area?  Thank you.

by CCF CARDIO MD DLB, Mar 22, 1999 12:00AM

_

Dear DB
The EP doctors do use x-ray imaging to help get near the general vicinity of the spot to ablate. Then they use electromagnetic signal to create a map of the are to ablate. The electromagnetic map of the site causing the SVT is different than that of the AV node. However, there is a small risk of hitting the AV node. If this happens, you may end up needing a pacemaker. Again, this risk is small, but definitely not zero.
The University of California in San Francisco has excellent EP doctors that do ablations.
I hope this has been useful. I wish you the best of luck. Feel free to write back.
Information provided here is for general purposes only. Specific questions should be addressed to your own doctor. If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.





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