Electrophysiology Clinic Education and Resources

When your heart is working correctly, it contracts and relaxes in a regular rhythm. If your heartbeat speeds up or becomes irregular, you may be experiencing atrial fibrillation, or AFib....

Tiny devices that help regulate the heart’s rhythm have been around since the first cardiac pacemaker was implanted in the late 1950s. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators, or ICDs, came along in 1980. Pacemakers and ICDs are both battery-powered devices that are implanted below the skin to keep track of an individual’s heart rate using thin wires, called leads, that connect to the heart. If an abnormal heart rhythm is detected, the devices automatically deliver an electric shock to restore a normal heartbeat. Although the devices work in similar ways, their duties are different....

Whether felt as a racing heart, palpitations or a fluttering in the chest, an abnormal heart rhythm should be evaluated by a medical professional who can determine the most appropriate treatment. Medications work well for many people, but when those are not effective, treatment may include cardiac ablation. This minimally invasive procedure creates tiny scars in heart tissue to block electrical signals that are causing the abnormal heart rhythm, or arrhythmia....