Abstract
Treatment of atrial fibrillation by creating linear lesions in patients undergoing
heart surgery (mitral valve replacement or coronary bypass grafting) receives increasing
interest Conventional rhythm surgery require tremendous operative effort and increases
the risks of perioperative complications. For that reason various alternative methods
for creating linear lesion are under investigation. This paper discusses several techniques
for creation of transmural lesions in open heart surgery, e.g. ultra sound ablation,
high current DC shocks, laser ablation, cryoablation, radio frequency ablation, cooled
radio frequency ablation, and microwave ablation.
Key words
Microwave energy - Open heart surgery - Atrial fibrillation
