Catheter Ablation of Cardiac Arrhythmias

In humans, the normal resting heart rate is 50–90 beats per minute (bpm); most average healthy individuals have resting rates in the 60–70 bpm range. Bradycardia (slow heartbeat) is a term used to refer to any heart rate <60 bpm, and tachycardia (fast heartbeat) indicates rates >100 bpm. Disturbances of cardiac impulse formation and/or transmission comprise the principal mechanisms causing abnormalities of heart rhythm. Broadly, these are classified as being either brady- or tachyarrhythmias. The primary goals for treatment of arrhythmias are (1) to alleviate symptoms and thus improve an individual’s quality of life and (2) to prolong patient survival. Pharmacologic treatment used to be the mainstay for management of most cardiac arrhythmias; however, implantable devices and ablation therapy have become the first-line therapy for many arrhythmias. In this chapter, we review the most common arrhythmias and their management, with a focus on ablation therapy techniques and technology.