Electrophysiology and arrhythmia care in Romania

Interventional electrophysiological procedures such as catheter ablation and cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) implantation have become important treatment options for patients with arrhythmia, but delivering state-of-the-art care can be challenging in developing countries. Romania has 19 million people. Throughout Romania, there are 28 centers that can implant CIEDs and 16 centers that can perform catheter ablation, but they are concentrated in the capital of Bucharest. Interventional arrhythmia procedures are performed less frequently than in other European countries (pacemaker: 301/million; implantable cardioverter-defibrillator: 44/million; cardiac resynchronization therapy: 13/million; catheter ablation: 0.8/million). Cardiologists with expertise in arrhythmia care have increased over the past decade and have formed an active organization that has instituted a national registry for interventional arrhythmia procedures and have been active in research and international arrhythmia organizations. Although significant work remains, our electrophysiology community is energized and is working to develop access to the best arrhythmia care for all Romanians.