Treatment of Tachycardia by Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation in Children and Adolescents

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: RFCA has been proven to be an effective and safe tool for treating different kinds of tachycardia in adults. This study was designed to analyze the efficacy of this method in children and adolescents. METHODS: Seventy-eight patients referred to Gachon Medical School, Gil Hospital for ablation of supraventricular(SVT) and ventricular tachycardia(VT) between January 1997 and February 1999 were included in this study. An electrophysiologic study was performed in the same session to assure the diagnosis, and meet the appropriate criteria for ablation. All patients had regular follow-up at our center. RESULTS: Mean age of the patients was 9.9 years. Thirty-seven patients had Wolff-Parkinson- White syndrome, atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardiain in 12 patients, atrial flutter in 11 patients, atrial tachycardia in 9 patients, Mahaim tachycardia in 2 patients, nodoventricular tachycardia in one patients and VT in 6 patients was found. Seventy-seven patients were treated successfully(98.7%), 75 patients were treated in a single procedure, but 2 patients needed a second attempt. RFCA treatment failed in only one patient with nodoventricular tachycardia. In three of the 77 successfully treated patients(3.9%), tachycardia recurred after 1-3 months but could be treated by a further intervention. The duration of follow up after RFCA was from 2 to 27 months. CONCLUSION: RFCA is a highly effective method in the treatment of SVT and VT in children and adolescents. The major benefit of this technique is its potential as a cure for a chronic disease. RFCA can be used as the primary treatment for SVT and VT.