The Columbus Regional Health Electrophysiology team, led by Dr. Albert Sey, recently completed their 500th AFib ablation case. Cardiac ablation is a minimally invasive procedure that uses hot or cold energy to identify, destroy, or isolate abnormal tissue or electrical pathways that cause an irregular rhythm in the heart, also known as arrhythmia.

People who have cardiac ablation typically experience less discomfort and a shorter recovery time than those who have traditional open-heart surgery.

Heart ablation is performed by a cardiologist or an electrophysiologist, a doctor who specializes in treating issues related to the heart’s electrical system. The following types of ablation procedures have been performed at CRH:

Radiofrequency ablation: high-frequency electrical energy, in the form of a radiofrequency wave, is used to heat and destroy the abnormal heart tissue causing arrhythmia.

Pulsed field ablation: uses short, high-energy electrical pulses to create precise and controlled lesions in the heart, effectively stopping the erratic electrical signals causing AFib. This approach is unique because it specifically targets heart muscle cells while sparing other tissues like the esophagus, phrenic nerve, and blood vessels nearby.