title: Cryoballoon ablation: a novel technique for treating focal atrial tachycardias from the pulmonary veins.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Cryothermic ablation using a cryoballoon is a novel technique which has been used to treat paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. In this study, we wanted to test this technique to treat focal atrial tachycardias (ATs) from the pulmonary veins (PV).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Five patients (four women, one man, mean age 43 +/- 16 years) with severe symptoms due to focal AT originating from a PV were studied. A single transseptal puncture was done. After confirmation of the diagnosis by conventional mapping, a 23 or 28 mm cryoballoon catheter was positioned in the PV of interest. Freezing was done for 300 s and repeated at least once before attempts to induce arrhythmia. All patients were successfully treated. Total procedure and fluoroscopy time was 138 +/- 55 and 26 +/- 21 min, respectively. During a follow-up of 10 +/- 7 months no clinical recurrences occurred.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cryoablation using a cryoballoon might be an easy and safe tool to treat ATs originating from the PV with reasonable procedure time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology Karolinska, University Hospital and Karolinska Institute, 141 86 Stockholm, Sweden. mats.jensen-urstad@ki.se
authors.forename: Mats
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jensen-Urstad
authors.forename: Hamid
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bastani
authors.forename: Frieder
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Braunschweig
authors.forename: Nikola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Drca
authors.forename: Per
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Insulander
authors.forename: Göran
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kennebäck
authors.forename: Jonas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schwieler
authors.forename: Fariborz
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tabrizi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000601:surgery*; D002404:Catheterization / Q000379:methods*; D003452:Cryosurgery / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006329:Heart Conduction System / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D011667:Pulmonary Veins / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome