C. Stellbrink et al., POTENTIAL OF INTRACARDIAC ULTRASONOGRAPHY AS AN ADJUNCT FOR MAPPING AND ABLATION, The American heart journal, 127(4), 1994, pp. 1095-1101
Radio frequency catheter ablation of cardiac tissues has evolved rapid
ly as the standard therapy for various arrhythmias. Current mapping te
chniques include fluoroscopy and endocardial ECG recordings. These tec
hniques are time-consuming and give only limited information with rega
rd to cardiac anatomy and pathology. Moreover; fluoroscopy leads to si
gnificant radiation exposure to the patient and the operator. Intracar
diac ultrasonography is a promising new technique that may improve int
racardiac anatomic orientation, reduce radiation exposure, allow bette
r control of lesion formation during radio frequency current applicati
on, and identify possible complications such as thrombus formation or
perforation. Intracardiac ultrasonography systems that are presently a
vailable are limited by insufficient penetration depth and image resol
ution. Technical refinements are discussed that may improve the applic
ability of intracardiac echocardiography for electrophysiologic mappin
g procedures.