Ablation therapy for patients with supraventricular tachycardia

Over the past decade, a more complete understanding of the mechanisms of supraventricular tachycardia has made possible the development of surgical and catheter techniques designed to control these arrhythmias. Ablative techniques are generally used when the arrhythmia proves refractory to drug and/or antitachycardia pacing therapy or when lifelong drug therapy is believed to be less desirable than a potentially curative procedure. In this essay, we explore the known mechanisms for supraventricular arrhythmias as well as the rationale for the use of ablative techniques.