Successful intracardiac electrical conversion of atrial flutter in patients with complex congenital heart disease

Sixteen patients presenting on 21 occasions with atrial flutter in association with complex congenital heart disease were treated by intracardiac stimulation techniques combined with activation mapping. Nineteen episodes of atrial flutter were successfully converted to sinus rhythm. In the remaining two episodes atrial fibrillation was induced with spontaneous conversion to sinus rhythm within 12 hours in one episode and immediate DC cardioversion to sinus rhythm in the other. Intracardiac stimulation techniques were highly successful in this group and allowed reliable conversion to sinus rhythm without general anaesthesia and high energy cardioversion. In patients with atrial flutter associated with congenital heart disease intracardiac stimulation techniques should be tried first.