Current strategies in the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation: review of the literature and Onze Lieve Vrouw Clinic's strategy.
Atrial fibrillation is the most common rhythm disturbance in clinical practice. It is a major source of stroke and morbidity. Although the Cox maze procedure effectively eliminates atrial fibrillation in most patients, the procedure has not found widespread application. As a consequence, new operations that use alternative sources of energy, such as radiofrequency, microwave, cryothermy, laser, and ultrasound have emerged to surgically create lesion sets to treat atrial fibrillation. This article reviews the fundamentals and current strategies in the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation.
Bakir
Ihsan
I
Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery Department, Onze Lieve Vrouw Clinic, Aalst, Belgium.
Casselman
Filip P
FP
Brugada
Pedro
P
Geelen
Peter
P
Wellens
Francis
F
Degrieck
Ivan
I
Van Praet
Frank
F
Vermeulen
Yvette
Y
De Geest
Raphael
R
Vanermen
Hugo
H
D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000601:surgery; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000145:classification / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D017115:Catheter Ablation; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D053685:Laser Therapy; D008872:Microwaves / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000078702:Radiofrequency Therapy; D014464:Ultrasonic Therapy