New FAQ Answered: Which Procedure Has the Best Success Rate?
We’ve answered a new FAQ under the category: Understanding Atrial Fibrillation. Thanks to Thomas Scheben for this question:
I have paroxysmal A-Fib and would like to know your opinion on which procedure has the best cure rate.
The best cure rate isn’t the only criteria you should consider when seeking your Atrial Fibrillation cure. Let me first review your top three procedure options: cardioversion, catheter ablation, and surgical Maze/Mini-Maze.
Electrocardioversion: When first diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation, doctors often recommend an Electrocardioversion to get you back into normal sinus rhythm. But for most patients, their A-Fib returns within a week to a month. (However, you might be lucky like the A-Fib patient who wrote us that he was A-Fib free for 7 years after a successful cardioversion.)
Catheter Ablations: Radio-frequency and CryoBalloon catheter ablations have similar success rates 70%-85% for the first ablation, around 90% is you need a second ablation.
How to achieve these high success rates? It’s crucial you choose the right electrophysiologist (EP)…Continue to read my full answer.