Catheter ablation for atrial flutter and fibrillation: An effective alternative to medical therapy

PREVIEWTraditionally, atrial arrhythmias have been treated pharmacologically, although in many patients such therapy is not effective or well tolerated. For such patients, radiofrequency catheter ablation can be a reasonable alternative that offers a high initial success rate and low complication rate. In this article, the authors present an update on the use of ablation in atrial flutter and atrial fibrillation, including a review of recent studies and a discussion of the benefits and downsides of the procedure.