(Circulation. 1999;100:e123.)
© 1999 American Heart Association, Inc.
Circulation Electronic Pages |
Nonpharmacological Therapy of Arrhythmias for the 21st Century: The State of the Art
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Introduction |
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Igor Singer, S. Serge Barold, John Camm. 908 pp, illustrated. New York: Futura Publishing Company, Inc; 1998. $125.00. ISBN 0-87993-690-8.
This text represents an ambitious undertaking by the editors Igor Singer, S. Serge Barold, and John Camm. It comprises four sections and has contributions from 82 authors. In this up-to-date text, the editors and authors present an excellent overview of the current state of the art in nonpharmacological therapies for cardiac arrhythmias. The first section is entitled "Advances in Catheter Ablation." The section opens with a review of the "Physics and Biology of Catheter Ablation" by Paul J. Wang and N.A. Mark Estes. This chapter provides a useful summary of radiofrequency ablation and advances in monitoring such as temperature measurement. The authors go beyond the current clinical state of the art with information on microwave, laser, ultrasound, and cryoablation.
The chapter by Bruce M. McManus and Shirley M. Wood on "Morphological Features of Normal and Abnormal Conduction System" is essential for the electrophysiologist interested in ablative techniques. This chapter is beautifully illustrated and describes not only the usual anatomic locations of arrhythmic substrates but also provides information on conductive anatomy in such anomalies as univentricular heart, tetralogy of Fallot, septal defects, and transposition of the great arteries. These descriptions are particularly helpful to the electrophysiologist involved in caring for patients with congenital heart disease.
The chapters on ablation of the various substrates are contained in
this first section of the book and deal with the usual suspects: AV
node modification,