'Ablation' Procedure Helps 3 out of 4 Patients With Irregular Heartbeat
But results may not be lasting, and patients may still need to take medications
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Wednesday, January 25, 2017
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WEDNESDAY, Jan. 25, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Just how successful is the procedure called catheter ablation at fixing irregular heartbeats that can be potentially fatal?
Pretty successful, a new study found, but there are caveats.
Burning or freezing specific areas of the heart can alleviate the common irregular heart beat called atrial fibrillation in 74 percent of patients. However, the procedure doesn't work for everyone and there are risks of complications, researchers report.
Atrial fibrillation increases the risk of early death by two times in women and 1.5 times in men. It causes 20 to 30 percent of all strokes and can decrease quality of life due to palpitations, shortness of breath, tiredness, weakness and psychological distress, the study authors explained.
https://medlineplus.gov/news/fullstory_163246.html
