Procainamide side effects

The literature that comes with Procanbid states that "the prolonged use of procainamide often leads to the development of a positive antinuclear anibody test, with or without symptoms of a lupus erymatosus-like syndrom (syndrome)".

1.) Please translate this into laymen's terms.

2.) How serious is the risk and what are the statistics.

3.) Do the afib professionals consider it to be a 'safe' drug for prolonged use or is catheter ablation a better choice?

Thanks again.

[Cleveland Clinic, MD]

1.) Please translate this into laymen's terms.
A: Lupus is an autoimmune disorder that may develop from taking procainamide.  

     2.) How serious is the risk and what are the statistics.
A: Maybe 2-5% of people taking the drug will develop some signs of Lupus.   This goes away when the drug is stopped.

     3.) Do the afib professionals consider it to be a 'safe' drug for prolonged use or is catheter ablation a better
     choice?
A: It is a safe drug but does have a high incidence of side-effects.  Ablation is a good option but is not always successful.