BOSTON, May 14, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Combining two treatments for an
irregular heartbeat yields much better patient results than either treatment
alone, says a study presented Thursday in Boston.
Using a traditional method of burning tissue surrounding the pulmonary veins
along with a newer, automated approach of targeting and burning heart "hot
spots" greatly reduced atrial fibrillation, the most common heart-rhythm
disturbance, after just one treatment, said electrophysiologist Dr. Atul Verma
of Southlake Regional Health Center in Newmarket, Ontario, near Toronto, who
designed and spearheaded the study.
Seventy-four percent of patients who received the combination treatments showed
no signs of atrial fibrillation after a year, compared with 47 percent who
received only traditional burning of the pulmonary vein tissue -- an area shown
to transmit electrical signals that trigger atrial fibrillation -- and 29
percent who underwent only "hot spot" therapy, the study found.
The burning treatment, called ablation, burns part of the inside of the heart,
creating a scar that blocks abnormal signals. Doctors do this because
medications to control the condition are often ineffective.
The study also found that 94 percent of patients who received the combined
therapy remained off any anti-arrhythmic medicine at the end of a 12-month
follow-up period, the study found.
The study followed 108-patients at four Canadian hospitals and four cardiac
centers in Norway, Spain and Italy over a year. The findings were presented at
the Heart Rhythm Society's annual Scientific Sessions. ,.
The study compared the two major methods of treating atrial fibrillation
patients, whose hearts quiver instead of having a coordinated contraction.
Atrial fibrillation is responsible for 15 to 20 percent of all strokes, the
researchers said.
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Copyright 2009 by United Press International