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Cardiovascular Research 2002 55(4):703-705; doi:10.1016/S0008-6363(02)00532-1
© 2002 by European Society of Cardiology
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Copyright © 2002, European Society of Cardiology

A starting point for structure function relationships in the canine pulmonary veins

Brenda R Kwak*, Dipen C Shah and François Mach

Foundation for Medical Research, Division of Cardiology, University Hospital, 64 Avenue de la Roseraie, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +41-22-382-7238; fax: +41-22-382-7245 brenda.kwakchanson@medecine.unige.ch

Received 27 June 2002; accepted 27 June 2002

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

See article by Verheule et al. [6] (pages 727–738) in this issue.

The recent demonstration of the effectiveness of catheter ablation of the pulmonary veins as a curative treatment for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) has prompted efforts to examine in detail the sleeves of atrial myocardium encasing their left atrial ends [1]. Multi-electrode catheter mapping of spontaneous episodes of AF in patients show that the majority (>90%) of paroxysms begin with earliest activation at the ostium or within the pulmonary veins [2]. Consistent initiation of paroxysms of AF from tissue in this region reinforces the probability of distinctive structural or functional characteristics being responsible for such anatomical localization.

Activation mapping within the confines of the pulmonary veins is limited by their diameter (about 15–17 mm), complex branching structure as well as the limitations of access through a transseptal puncture. A preformed loop shaped multi-electrode catheter positioned orthogonal to . . . [Full Text of this Article]


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