A new surgical treatment is now available at the American Hospital Dubai to treat heart arrhythmia, which occurs when the heart beats irregularly and cannot pump blood effectively, putting vital organs such as the brain and lungs at risk and making patients vulnerable to heart attack and strokes.

The new cardiac surgical procedure called ‘thoracoscopic atrial fibrillation ablation – in which heart tissue is burned using a catheter to leave scar tissue that creates new pathways for electrical impulses - restores the normal sequence of electrical impulses that trigger each heart beat. This procedure is undertaken using minimally invasive surgery techniques, thereby lowering risk and speeding up recovery.

Heart arrhythmia, which can affect children and adults had always been considered untreatable until recently.

The surgical procedure involves deflating the lungs, to access the heart. Two small incisions are made between the ribs and a telescope-like device with a camera (endoscope) is inserted into the lung to enable the surgeon to see what he is doing, on a screen in front of him. The wand (catheter) that burns the heart tissue on the veins to scar them is inserted through the other incision. The surgeon then inserts a special tool, which looks like a hair grip, to clip the left atrial appendage closed, so it is separated off from the heart. The clip stays inside permanently. The lung is then re-inflated and the procedure repeated on the other side of the heart so that more of the problem area can be covered and allowing the surgeon to create a thick barrier of scar tissue.

The causes of arrhythmia are not clearly understood. It is common amongst many populations but only a small number of heart surgeons are able to carry out the new surgical procedure.

“This latest surgical procedure can cure the problem with one surgical intervention. Perhaps just as importantly, during the surgery we also remove the biggest risk factor for clots, the area of the heart called the left atrial appendage; by closing off this part of the heart, you reduce the risk of stroke. The operation takes around two hours,” said Dr Stephen Griffin, heart surgeon, American Hospital Dubai. - TradeArabia News Service