Cardiac Ablation in Tuscaloosa

Champions for Your Health.

Cardiac ablation is used to treat specific heart rhythm problems that medicines are not controlling. These problems may be dangerous for you if they are not treated.

Common symptoms of heart rhythm problems may include:

• Chest pain
• Fainting
• Fast or slow heartbeat (palpitations)
• Light-headedness, dizziness
• Paleness
• Shortness of breath
• Skipping beats - changes in the pattern of the pulse
• Sweating

Some heart rhythm problems are:

• AV Nodal Reentrant Tachycardia (AVNRT)
• Accessory Pathway, such as Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome
• Atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter
• Ventricular tachycardia

Electrophysiology uses advanced technology to detect, diagnose and treat these arrhythmias. Cardiac ablation can be used to treat arrhythmias. During this procedure, small wires called electrodes are placed inside your heart via the leg, similar to heart catheterization. The electrodes measure your heart's electrical activity, and they may also be used to ablate (destroy) small areas of tissue in your heart that are causing the heart to beat irregularly.

Cardiac ablation procedures are done in the electrophysiology lab at DCH Regional Medical Center.