Cardiac Ablation

Cardiac ablation is a catheter treatment for abnormal heart rhythms. Thin wires are passed through a vein at the top of the leg into the heart, the faulty electrical spot or circuit is located, and it is destroyed with heat (radiofrequency), freezing (cryoablation) or pulsed electrical fields.

It can cure some rhythm problems outright, such as supraventricular tachycardia and typical atrial flutter, and it reduces episodes in atrial fibrillation. Its main limit is that atrial fibrillation can return, and a second procedure is needed in a meaningful minority of people.

What Cardiac Ablation involves

You lie on an X-ray table and the groin is numbed. Sheaths are placed in the femoral vein and catheters are steered into the heart under X-ray and, often, a three-dimensional mapping system such as CARTO or EnSite. The team records the electrical signals, may trigger the arrhythmia to confirm the diagnosis, and then delivers energy to the target. For atrial fibrillation the catheter crosses into the left atrium through a small puncture in the wall between the upper chambers, and the pulmonary veins are electrically isolated. Blood thinning is given during left-sided work. At the end the catheters are removed and the vein is closed with pressure or a stitch.

Who is a good candidate for Cardiac Ablation?

Ablation is offered when a documented arrhythmia causes symptoms, when medicines fail or are not tolerated, or when a rhythm is weakening the heart.

• You have recurrent supraventricular tachycardia or Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome recorded on an ECG
• You have symptomatic atrial fibrillation despite at least one rhythm medicine, or prefer not to take one long term
• You have typical atrial flutter
• You have very frequent ventricular extra beats that cause symptoms or reduce heart pumping
• You can take blood thinners around the procedure if it involves the left atrium

It is usually not the right choice if:

• Your palpitations have never been captured on a recording, so the rhythm is unknown
• You have a clot in the left atrium on imaging
• You have long-standing persistent atrial fibrillation with a very enlarged atrium, where success is low
• You have an active infection or uncontrolled thyroid disease driving the rhythm
• You expect to stop blood thinners afterwards regardless of your stroke risk score

الخيارات التقنية

• Radiofrequency ablation: Point by point heating. The standard for SVT, flutter, accessory pathways and ventricular arrhythmias, and widely used for atrial fibrillation.
• Cryoballoon ablation: A balloon freezes around each pulmonary vein. Used for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation; procedure times are predictable.
• Pulsed field ablation: A newer energy that targets heart muscle cells with less effect on nearby structures. Increasingly used for atrial fibrillation; long-term data are still building.
• 3D electroanatomical mapping: Builds a colour map of the chamber so less X-ray is needed and complex circuits can be traced.

ماذا يحدث خلال علاجك

Simple ablations take 1 to 2 hours and atrial fibrillation or ventricular procedures 2 to 4 hours. Most are done under sedation with local anaesthetic; some centres use general anaesthesia for atrial fibrillation. You may feel your heart racing when the rhythm is triggered and a warm or pressing feeling in the chest during energy delivery. Afterwards you lie flat for 4 to 6 hours to protect the groin.

الإعداد لرحلتك

One procedure in one hospital stay of 1 to 2 nights. Plan about 5 to 7 days in Istanbul so that pre-procedure tests, the ablation and a check of the groin and rhythm all fit before you fly. Bring every ECG or monitor recording of your arrhythmia. Follow-up rhythm monitoring over the next 3 to 12 months happens at home.

• Tell the doctor about medication, allergies, pregnancy or breastfeeding, and any history of cold sores, keloid scars or autoimmune disease
• Avoid alcohol, aspirin and anti-inflammatory painkillers for a few days beforehand if your own doctor agrees, to reduce bruising
• Arrive without make-up on the treatment area and avoid sunbeds and strong sun for two weeks before

التعافي والنتائج

Most people walk the same evening and go home the next day. Avoid heavy lifting and strenuous exercise for about a week while the groin heals. Skipped beats and short runs of palpitations are common in the first 8 to 12 weeks after atrial fibrillation ablation and do not mean failure; success is judged after that period. Blood thinners continue for at least 2 months, and longer if your stroke risk is raised.

• Back to everyday activity: About 1 week
• When results show: Judged after a 3 month healing period
• How long they last: Often permanent for SVT and flutter; AF may recur

سياسة السلامة والمخاطر والتنقيح

Serious complications are uncommon, roughly 1 to 4 in 100 depending on the type of ablation, and are higher for left atrial and ventricular work.

• Bruising, bleeding or a false aneurysm at the groin puncture
• Bleeding around the heart (tamponade) needing a drain
• Stroke or transient ischaemic attack during left-sided procedures
• Damage to the normal conduction system needing a pacemaker, mainly with ablation near the AV node
• Phrenic nerve injury or, rarely, injury to the oesophagus or narrowing of a pulmonary vein after atrial fibrillation ablation
• Recurrence of the arrhythmia and the need for a repeat procedure

Every written proposal arranged through Clinic-Y states what the clinic covers if a correction is needed. Ask for it before you book, not after.

Cost of Cardiac Ablation in Türkiye

Clinic-Y does not publish a single price for Cardiac Ablation, because the honest figure depends on your case. What moves it:

• The type of arrhythmia: a simple SVT ablation uses far less equipment than atrial fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia
• Energy source and single-use catheters, including cryoballoon or pulsed field systems
• Use of 3D mapping and intracardiac echo
• General anaesthesia and length of stay
• Pre-procedure imaging such as transoesophageal echo or cardiac CT

Send your photographs or reports and you receive written, all-inclusive proposals from suitable teams, side by side. Reviewing your case is free.

الأسئلة المتكررة