Wolff Parkinson White Syndrome

[Thatmegangirl]

My teenage friend had recently been diagnosed with Wolff Parkinson White Syndrome. He has to have an operation to help fix this problem. What will be done during the operation? What are the risks of having this operation? How will he be affected by the operation, positive and negative?

[kenkeith]

WPW involves having many unnecessary pathways to follow for an electrical pulse that contracts heart chambers. This condition can cause irregular heartbeats, atrial (upper heart chamber) to flutter, fibrillatate and may require electrical cardioversion (ablation) for serious conditions, and for a more stable condition, medical treatment may be used.

If necessary the treatment would be the destruction of abnormal elelctrical pathways by radiofrequency catheter (insrument that is guided through a large vessel to the heart) abalation. Radiofrequency catheter ablation is not performed in all individuals with WPW syndrome because there are inherent risks involved in the procedure. When performed by an experienced electrophysiologist, radiofrequency ablation has a high success rate  If radiofrequency catheter ablation is successfully performed, the patient is generally considered cured..

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[Thatmegangirl]

Thank you for your response.
Could you please outline for me the risks involved in the catheter ablation?
Thank you again.